The Scottish Greens have been accused of a “petty attack on the King” after tabling plans to strip Charles of a long-standing property tax break in Scotland.
Co-leader Ross Greer has proposed an amendment to the Housing (Scotland) Bill that would remove the Crown’s exemption from land and buildings transaction tax (LBTT), the Scottish version of stamp duty.
If MSPs back the move in a vote on Tuesday, the King would have to pay the levy on any “residential property transactions.”
The measure would also allow ministers to impose a separate LBTT surcharge on buyers who are “not ordinarily resident in Scotland” and “do not intend to use the dwelling as their only or main residence.”
Scottish Greens slammed for ‘petty attack on King Charles’ with bid to end royal tax break
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The Greens say the surcharge is aimed at overseas investors as well as individuals, with the rate to be set later.
Green sources confirmed the amendment would have applied to Charles’s 2007 rescue of Dumfries House in Ayrshire, a £45million deal supported by his charitable foundation and the Scottish Government.
At today’s rates, a purchase of that size could face an LBTT bill of around £5.4million. Smaller acquisitions such as cottages on the Balmoral estate would also be covered.
The Scottish Conservatives condemned the plan. Meghan Gallacher, the party’s shadow housing secretary, told the Telegraph: “Ross Greer is once again showing his true colours. It is ridiculous that, when Scotland is facing a housing emergency, he has made this a priority.
Co-leader of the Scottish Green Party Ross Greer pictured earlier this month
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“His and the Greens’ republican views are well known, but even when faced with such a serious issue, he cannot help making such a petty attack on the King and the monarchy.
“This is gesture politics at its very worst. We should be spending our time talking about how we can deliver the homes Scotland needs, encouraging investment in the sector and ending the scandal of families being trapped in temporary accommodation.”
However, a Scottish Greens spokesman defended the proposal, saying: “The Tories are the party of the wealthy and the privileged few, so it is no wonder that they are so determined to keep tax breaks in place for one of the richest men in the world.
“No family should be allowed to exempt themselves from following the laws of the land and paying taxes that everyone else has to.”
King Charles pictured outside Dumfries House
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LBTT is charged at two per cent on the portion of a property’s price between £145,001 and £250,000, rising to five per cent up to £325,000, 10 per cent up to £750,000 and 12 per cent above that—thresholds far lower than stamp duty in England, where the top 12 per cent rate only starts at £1.5million.
The amendment is one of hundreds being debated as part of the Housing (Scotland) Bill, which aims to address the country’s chronic shortage of homes.
Mr Greer has already succeeded with a separate change giving councils the power to impose unlimited council tax rises on second homes.