§ Tim LoughtonTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for (1) what reason he proposes to end gift aid tax relief on admission charges to charity venues; [144987]
(2) what discussions he has had with heritage and conservation charities about the ending of gift aid tax relief on admission charges; [144988]
(3) what his estimate is of the cost to charities of the ending of gift aid tax relief on admission charges; [144989]
(4) if he will list those charities which will be affected by the ending of gift aid tax relief on admission charges; [144990]
(5) how much money has been rebated to charities as a result of gift aid tax relief on admission charges since its inception. [144991]
§ John HealeyMany heritage and conservation charities benefit from a special exemption which means they can offer free admission to donors, without that admission being regarded as a benefit under Gift Aid rules. This was originally introduced in 1989 and applied to deed of covenant arrangements. Since the change to Gift Aid in April 2000 an increasing number of heritage and conservation charities are granting free admission in return for a donation equal to the entrance fee. Charities are able to claim Gift Aid on such donations. This is an undesirable and unintended side effect of the Gift Aid legislation. It is unfair for some charities to be able to reclaim Gift Aid whilst others cannot.
The amendments to the legislation will ensure that the special exemption for certain heritage and conservation charities applies as it was originally intended and not to "day memberships" of this kind.
The Government will be consulting closely with charities which might be affected, through their associations and representative bodies, on the detail of how the change may be best achieved.
Information on the amount repaid in relation to admission charges is not available, as there is no mechanism within Gift Aid to distinguish amounts repaid to charities according to the type of the donation. For this reason there are no estimates available of the cost to charities of the ending of the relief on admission charges.
Information about individual organisations claiming Gift Aid is not available; Exemption 15 (Statutory and other restrictions) of the Open Government Code applies.