Finance Bill 2023-24 continues its passage through the parliamentary process with report stage having taken place yesterday, Monday 5 February 2024. This will be followed by the Bill’s third reading in the House of Commons after which the Bill will proceed to the House of Lords. Last week the House of Lords Finance Bill Sub-Committee published its report into the Bill after thanking those who contributed to its inquiry into the Bill’s draft clauses. The Institute’s submission to the inquiry, which can be viewed on the Tax Representations page of our website, focused on the impact of merging the SME and large company R&D tax relief schemes and restrictions to the geographical scope of agricultural property relief from April 2024.
Last week the Government published details of amendments and new clauses ahead of report stage. These were accompanied by an Explanatory Note and Tax Information and Impact Note, where applicable, and are summarised as follows:-
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New Clause 5 — Electricity generator levy, new investment exemption;
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Amendments 7 to 8 to Schedule 1 — R&D intensity ratio and preventing double counting of amounts in total relevant expenditure;
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Amendment 1 to Schedule 1 — R&D: avoidance of double-claiming and gaps in entitlement during transition;
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Amendments 3 to 5 to Schedule 6 — imposing information requirements for creative sector relief to provide for consequences of non-compliance short of the total invalidity of the claim.