§ Mr. CartwrightTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether new office building contracts entered into and completed before 1 April 1989 will be exempt from value added tax; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. LilleyIn my statement of 21 June I made it clear that there would be no changes to the current value added tax arrangements before 1 April 1989. It follows that a contract for a completely new office building entered into and completed before that date will remain zero rated.
§ Mr. SpearingTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what announcements he has made concerning the receipt of comments by Her Majesty's Government relating to the mode and timing of incorporation of the recent ruling of the Court of the European Communities on value added tax; and if he will give the body or person and the address to which comments should be sent.
§ Mr. Lilley[holding answer 11 July 1988]: As I informed the House on 21 June, at columns 957–58, no changes to the VAT law to give effect to the judgment will take effect before 1 April 1989. A consultation document on issues affecting non-domestic construction was made available in the Vote Office and the Library on that day. A consultation paper on other aspects of the judgment was announced and placed in the Library on 30 June, a s announced in my reply to my hon. Friend the Member for Stevenage (Mr. Wood), at column 331.
Copies of both documents are available from Her Majesty's Customs and Excise, New King's Beam House, 22 Upper Ground, London SE1 9PJ. Any person or body wishing to comment on these proposals should write to VAT Administration Directorate, Division F, Room 14 at the above address no later than 31 August, although consultation with those who comment by 31 August will continue after that date.