Jane Hutt, Minister for Finance and Government Business
This was published under the 2011 to 2016 administration of the Welsh Government
The Wales Act 2014, which was recently passed by Parliament, provides Wales with new tax and financial powers. As part of this Act, SDLT will be devolved to Wales from April 2018. The Welsh Government propose replacing this tax with a Land Transaction Tax (LTT).
I am pleased to announce that I will be publishing a consultation on our proposals for a Land Transaction Tax on 10 February 2015. This is the second consultation on the devolution of new tax powers to Wales, following our consultation on the collection and management of devolved taxes in Wales which closed on 14 December 2014.
The consultation will be broad and open, providing a real opportunity for the people of Wales to be able to influence important aspects of LTT at this early stage of development. The tax should also be consistent with the principles on Welsh taxes which I have previously set out, which will look to create a tax that is:
- Fair to the businesses and individuals who pay them;
- Simple, with clear rules, aiming to minimise compliance and administration costs;
- Support growth and jobs, and in turn will help tackle poverty; and
- Provides stability and certainty for taxpayers.
LTT could have potentially important effects on the market for buildings and land for both residential and non-residential purposes. Therefore this is an important development in the National Assembly’s powers and I look forward to receiving your views on the issues raised in the forthcoming consultation.