§ Section twelve of the Finance Act, 1898 (which, as amended by Section sixty-three of the Finance Act, 1920, and Section fifty-four of the Finance Act, 1927, provides that if, before land tax is paid, the owner of the land produces a certificate that his income does not exceed one hundred and sixty pounds or four hundred pounds, the whole or one-half of the tax, as the case may be, shall not be collected), shall be amended by inserting immediately after Subsection (1) thereof the following Sub-section:
§ "(1A) Where any such owner, who has paid or borne land tax for any year for which that tax is assessed, produces any such certificate as aforesaid to the collector of land tax not later than the end of the twelve months next following the end of that year, he shall be entitled to be repaid such amount of the tax so paid or borne by him as would not have been collected if the certificate had been produced before the tax was paid."—[Captain Wallace.]
§ Brought up, and read the First time.
§ 8.9 p.m.
§ Captain WallaceI beg to move, "That the Clause be read a Second time."
This Clause is put down in accordance with a promise given in the course of the Committee stage Debate to my hon. Friend the Member for Twickenham (Mr. Keeling). Briefly the object is to amend the existing Land Tax law (which contains no provision for repayment) by allowing repayment to be claimed in one particular class of case, that is the case of the person who by reason of his total income not exceeding £400, or not exceeding £160, is entitled either to a partial or a complete exemption from the land tax. Under the existing law he must claim this exemption or relief before the land tax is paid, but this Clause will enable him to get repayment of the tax if he proves his title within 12 months of the land tax year of assessment in question. The House will appreciate that this Clause has very much the same purpose as the last new Clause which I moved on behalf of my right hon. Friend, and that is to see that we do not by means of unduly onerous administrative machinery deprive the taxpayer of some proper advantage which he might otherwise obtain.
§ Question put, and agreed to.
§ Clause read a Second time, and added to the Bill.