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2008 Budget: APCIMS REACTION12th March 2008
The state of the public finances and the global economic uncertainty coupled with an emphasis on big cars and plastic bags meant that there was very little in the Budget to excite private client investment managers and stockbrokers. That was perhaps not surprising given that the Chancellor had already announced changes relating to Capital Gains Tax, Corporation Tax, and Individual Savings Accounts well in advance of his Budget speech. The changes to the day counting rules in respect of Non-Domiciles and enabling ISA Managers to submit annual rather than quarterly statistical returns are of course welcome. Positive proposals in respect of the Investment Manager Exemption, taxation of personal dividends and offshore funds are also to be applauded. On the flip side, it is regrettable that abolishing stamp duty on instruments that would have previously attracted up to £5 stamp duty was not replicated for SDRT. More importantly, following what can only be described as a non-consultation on Capital Gains Tax last autumn, APCIMS would have liked to have seen a commitment from the Chancellor that there will be no major tax changes at least for the lifetime of this Parliament. The Government must also ensure that any future changes will be subject to a full and proper consultation exercise. We remain concerned about the potential impact that the CGT changes will have in terms of market liquidity on AIM shares with the loss of taper relief. A proper consultation exercise would at least have allowed the Government to give this further consideration. Whilst APCIMS very much welcomes tax simplification which is long overdue we remain concerned that, as demonstrated by the recent CGT changes, unintended consequences can arise without formal industry consultation. This cannot help the Government in its relations with the City nor be in the best interests of the UK as an international financial centre. Ends
APCIMS APCIMS, the Association of Private Client Investment Managers and Stockbrokers, represents the interests of the vast majority of private client stockbrokers and wealth managers in the UK, and through them more than 10 million individual shareholders.
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