§ Dr. Summerskillasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what items for the use of the disabled are specifically exempt from any purchase tax; and what items for the disabled are outside the scope of purchase tax.
§ Mr. HigginsItems of use to the disabled which are specifically exempt from purchase tax are:
Air pillows, air cushions. disposable incontinence pads, water beds, water pillows and water cushions, being articles of a kind used for domestic purposes.
Ambulances and invalid carriages.
Appliances and apparatus specially designed for invalids, the following:
- (i) chair lifts and stair lifts for use with invalid chairs;
- (ii) hoists and lifters.
Cutlery, and spoons, forks and similar articles, specially designed for use by persons not having the full use of their arms, and blanks thereof.
Fabrics of a kind suitable for and prepared or put up in special packs as surgical dressings.
Gramophones, gramophone records and sound records for the reproduction of speech specially adapted for the use of the blind.
Invalid aids, the following:
- (i) invalid chairs;
- (ii) over-bed tables and bed rests;
- (iii) commode chairs, commode stools, devices incorporating a bidet jet and warm air dryer, and frames or other devices for
332 assistance in sitting over or rising from a sanitary appliance; - (iv) bath rails, and seats for use in baths or under showers;
- (v) lazy tongs and similar devices;
- (vi) electrically or mechanically adjustable beds, specially designed for invalids.
Sanitary pans, chambers, urinals, commode pans, and lids for any of those articles Surgical appliances.
No comprehensive list of items for the disabled which are outside the scope of the purchase tax is available.