§ Mr. HawkinsTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what would be the cost in a full year of increasing the ceiling for mortgage interest tax relief to £48,000;
(2) what would be the level today of mortgage interest tax relief if it had been indexed for inflation (a) since 1979 and (b) since an upper limit was first imposed on its value.
§ Mr. MaudeIf the mortgage interest tax relief ceiling had been indexed in line with the retail prices index since 1979, it would be £63,000 in 1991–92. With indexation since its inception in 1974 the ceiling would be £131,000. The costs in 1991–92 of increasing the ceiling on mortgage interest tax relief are shown in the table.
Ceiling on mortgage interest tax relief Cost of increasing the ceiling on mortgage interest tax relief in 1991–921 Total cost of mortgage interest tax relief in 1991–92 £ £ billion £ billion 30,000 — 6.1 48,000 1.1 7.2 63,000 1.4 7.5 131,000 1.8 7.9 1The estimates are based on the distribution of existing outstanding mortgages and therefore exclude behavioural effects which could be substantial.