Inheritance Tax (Hansard, 23 June 1992)

§ Dr. David Clark
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what account is taken by his Department of payments received by landowners, including those for management agreements for sites of special scientific interest or set aside, in assessing the suitability of land for inheritance tax exemptions; and if he will make a statement.

§ Mr. Dorrell
The heritage advisory agencies take all relevant factors into account when considering the eligibility of land for conditional exemption from inheritance tax.
Entitlement to payments under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1991 management agreements or for environmentally sensitive areas under the Agriculture Act 1986 may be affected if land is conditionally exempted.

§ Dr. David Clark
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what criteria his Department uses to assess the benefits of inheritance tax exemptions for the granting of public access to land; and if he will make a statement.

§ Mr. Dorrell
In return for conditional exemption from inheritance tax, landowners are required to give undertakings to maintain the heritage property, preserve 111W its character and give reasonable public access to it. The heritage advisory agencies advise the Inland Revenue as to what constitutes reasonable public access: each case is considered individually on the basis of its own facts.

§ Dr. David Clark
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what is the procedure by which his Department informs local planning authorities of land where inheritance tax exemptions have been agreed for the granting of public access to land; how planning authorities are expected to take this into account when dealing with planning applications; and if he will make a statement.

§ Mr. Dorrell
Where inheritance tax exemption is being considered, a land management plan is prepared by the landowner. The appropriate heritage advisory agency consults the local authority or national park authority on the proposed plan. The planning authority is, therefore, aware of the exemption.
Planning applications are considered by the planning authority in the normal way, but the landowner is required to inform the heritage advisory agency of any proposed development of land which has received inheritance tax exemption. If the proposed development would lead to a breach of the undertakings given in return for the tax exemption, the agency discusses the position with the landowner and if a satisfactory outcome—for instance appropriate revised arrangements for public access—is not secured, a deferred inheritance tax charge will be triggered. To date, there has been no occasion on which such a tax charge has arisen.