Mr. Meadowcroftasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he has made a decision regarding value added tax payments on Airey house remedial works; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. MooreTo qualify for VAT zero rating, work to an existing building must amount to a structural alteration and must not be work of repair and maintenance. Repair or maintenance is liable to VAT at the standard rate, and there can be no special or general relief for Airey house remedial works in that respect. However, Customs and Excise have been examining a particular kind of remedial work devised for Airey houses by Leeds city council which involves replacing the load bearing structure with a new cavity brick and block wall. They accept that this particular form of work constitutes an alteration of the Airey house which will properly attract relief from VAT by way of zero rating because the work goes substantially beyond the repair or maintenance of the existing structure.