Conservatives continue campaign to abolish stamp duty

Party leader Kemi Badenoch first set out the idea in a speech at the end of the Conservative Party conference in October last year, presenting it as a measure aimed at supporting home ownership and increasing housing market activity. The proposal has since remained part of the party’s policy discussions.

At last year’s conference in Manchester, Badenoch said removing stamp duty on primary residences would help more people access the housing ladder and improve mobility within the market.

Shadow chancellor Sir Mel Stride has since taken forward the proposal, arguing that stamp duty is reducing transaction levels and acting as a barrier to movement in the housing market.

In March, Stride visited Winkworth’s Pimlico office in central London, where he discussed the policy as part of the Conservatives’ wider approach to housing taxation. During the visit, hosted by Winkworth chief executive Dominic Agace, he said removing stamp duty would support market activity and broader economic performance.

Stride has continued to promote the proposal alongside industry engagement, arguing that stamp duty is restricting housing transactions.

Stride has since returned to work with Winkworth to help communicate both his and the party’s position on the issue.

Stamp duty, he said, is “bunging up the housing market.”

In an appearance on the latest episode of Winkworth’s Property Exchange podcast, the Shadow Chancellor also described stamp duty as “the most economically damaging tax.”

In a conversation with Winkworth’s chief executive Dominic Agace, Stride told the podcast: “Stamp duty damages aspiration and the economy. And this hits the majority of England. It’s not just a London problem. The social consequences are far-reaching, from first time buyers to elderly people living in houses they can’t afford to run.  It’s bunging up the housing market. The Conservatives would get rid of it and fund it by reductions in the benefits bill, reducing the size of the Civil Service to 2016 levels  and cutting overseas aid.

“This wouldn’t be a tax cut for the hugely affluent. It would enable people to move  at every level of the market.  Most people impacted by stamp duty don’t live in London and most transactions are below £500,000.”

He added: “Every property transaction drives economic activity – for plumbers, builders, retailers and all businesses connected with setting up home.”

He also warned the government against “kite flying, as we saw recently  with a rumoured rent freeze. The damage these rumours wreak is serious and long-term.”

Agace described how stamp duty has slashed the number of home moves. He told the podcast: “It is devastating for the level of transactions and affecting all movement in the property market. There were 72,000 transactions last year, compared with140,000 transactions a few years ago.

“The effects are slowing down the whole economy. Young talent is going elsewhere to buy their first property. We have young families trapped in flats that are too small and elderly people living in one room. They can’t afford the bills and can’t afford to move because they are terrified of losing the money they need for their pensions.”