§ Mr. Dewarasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what would be the cost of extending the right of a local authority under section 15 of the Finance Act 1972 to reclaim value added tax on purchases made for the purposes of its non-business activities to include purchases 200W made for the provision of statutory services from funds raised by local authority lotteries or provided by donation; and what is the cost of the present exemption for the latest convenient period.
§ Mr. Bruce-GardyneLocal authorities have always been able to reclaim under section 15 of the Finance Act 1972 the VAT on purchases made out of the proceeds of local authority lotteries, or from true donations made to the local authority, for the purposes of undertaking their non-business activities.
The present cost to the Revenue of providing section 15 relief for local authorities is estimated to be in the order of £490 million a year.