SDLT News page
SDLT Limited Partnerships:
Following a private discussion at the BPF conference, Ruth Kelly, Financial Secretary to the Treasury, agreed to meet BPF President, David Hunter, to hear their case against the Government's proposals for imposing (SDLT) on Limited Partnerships.
David, who was supported by Mark Hyde Harrison who runs Barclays Bank UK Retirement Fund, made a strong case based upon four arguments:
* that the proposed regime would effectively impose double taxation on Limited Partnerships (LPs) through the payment of a 4% charge on the acquisition of property and then a 4% charge on any unit trades
* that this would place LPs at a disadvantage compared with all other property vehicles, including direct ownership, which incur only one level of SDLT
* that the impact of the 4% on unit trades would be significantly higher if the partnership was geared (i.e. 8% with 50% gearing) and that this would lead to an overnight fall of 8% in the value of the LP assets
* that because fund managers are under a fiduciary duty to do the best possible deal for their clients they were all recommending them to move offshore.
Ms Kelly listened with great interest to these arguments and said she would respond in due course. The BPF is not over optimistic - but at least they now know that the Minister has heard their case directly.
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