Britons approve of Cameron stamp duty plans

05-Oct-2007

Almost nine in ten Britons are behind David Cameron's plans to scrap stamp duty on homes worth up to £250,000, new research from FindaProperty.com has revealed.

The proposal was officially unveiled by the shadow chancellor, George Osborne, at the Conservative Party's autumn conference alongside a separate proposal to raise the inheritance tax threshold, and seem to have found favour with the electorate.

Coupled with Cameron's speech at the conference later in the week, the plans are likely to be part of the reason why the Conservatives have closed the gap on Labour in the latest opinion polls – a finding backed up by the FindaProperty.com study.

Eighty-seven per cent of respondents to the survey said that they believe the measure will help first time buyers in their quest to get on the first rung of the property ladder.

However, critics have already advised that few buyers in London will be able to take advantage of the proposal because average house prices in the capital are already above £250,000.

The government has also unsurprisingly been critical of the plans, with Alistair Darling calling the Conservatives' overall tax plans "reckless".

"When it comes to other ways in which the Government can help would-be owner-occupiers the biggest vote was for developers to provide more homes specifically for first-time buyers (66 per cent) and the imposition of restrictions on the number of properties investors can buy (50 per cent)," commented FindaProperty.com head of content Mike O'Flynn.

"Gordon Brown has made housing central to his premiership, and the Tories have now taken up the challenge: whether it's an autumn election or one next spring, we expect housing to be a major issue, and one that could have a significant impact on the outcome," Mr O'Flynn concluded.

The government has unsurprisingly been critical of the plans, with Alistair Darling calling the Conservatives' overall tax plans "reckless".

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