FINANCE BILL (Hansard, 16 July 1974)

HC Deb 16 July 1974 vol 877 cc271-366 271

§ As amended (in the Committee and in the Standing Committee), considered.

§ Ordered, That on consideration of the Finance Bill any Amendments relating to the Clauses and Schedules be considered in the following order

	'(1)If a person carrying on a trade has on or after 1st June 1972 incurred expenditure in taking steps specified in a notice served on him by the fire authority under section 5(4) of the Fire Precautions Act 1971, and—
5	(a) the notice was issued on an application for a fire certificate in respect of premises used by him for the purposes of the trade; and
	(b) an allowance or deduction in respect of the expenditure could not, apart from this section, be made in taxing the trade or computing the profits or gains arising from it;
10	Chapter I of Part III of the Finance Act 1971 shall apply as if the expenditure were capital expenditure incurred on the provision of machinery or plant for the purposes of the trade, and as if the machinery or plant had, in consequence of his 15
15	incurring the expenditure, belonged to him and had been in use for the purposes of the trade; and as if the disposal value of the machinery or plant were nil.
(2)	This section shall be construed as if contained in Chapter I of Part III of the Finance Act 1971 '.—[Dr. Gilbert.]

§ Brought up, and read the First time.

§ 5.5 p.m.

§ The Financial Secretary to the Treasury (Dr. John Gilbert)
I beg to move, That the clause be read a Second time.

§ Mr. Deputy Speaker (Mr. George Thomas)
With this new clause we may discuss new Clause 7—(Fire precautions work in hotels and boarding-houses to qualify for tax relief—and new Clause 31—(Relief for expenditure on fire precautions in hotels and boarding-houses)

§ Dr. Gilbert
I thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker, for guiding us once again through the intricacies of procedure.
The effect of new Clause 10 is to provide tax relief in respect of expenditure incurred as a result of a notice served by a fire authority under Section 5(4) of the Fire Precautions Act 1971 to the extent that the expenditure does not already rank for tax relief under the existing law. It does so by treating the expenditure not already entitled to relief as if it were expenditure incurred in the provision of machinery and plant. In effect, this extends the 100 per cent. first year allowance to such expenditure. The House will be glad to learn that the relief we propose shall apply to expenditure incurred on or after 1st June 1972. This

272

§ of Clauses and Schedules, namely: Clauses 1 to 15; Schedule 1; Clauses 16 and 17; Schedule 2; Clauses 18 to 33; Schedules 3 and 4; Clause 34; Schedule 5; Clause 35; Schedule 6; Clauses 36 to 39; Schedules 7 and 8; Clause 40; Schedule 9; Clauses 41 and 42; Schedule 10; Clauses 43 and 44; Schedule 11; Clauses 45 and 46; Schedule 12; Clause 47; Schedule 13; Clauses 48 to 51; Schedule 14.—[Dr. John Gilbert.]