§ Mr. Jon Owen JonesTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) pursuant to his answer of 17 February,Official Report, column 210, what consideration was given to the Charities Tax Reform Group proposals regarding the introduction of a value added tax refund scheme;
(2) what plans the Government have to introduce a value added tax refund scheme for charities.
§ Sir John CopeWe considered this proposal very carefully. We concluded that it is better to foster a more favourable tax regime for charitable fund raising and charitable giving rather than introduce more reliefs based on charity spending. This policy provides the greatest benefit to charities perceived by givers to deserve most support rather than to those which happen to spend most on taxable goods and services in the United Kingdom. Total tax reliefs to charities now amount to almost £1 billion a year.