Clarifying Taper I

In my article 'Full of Promise' in Taxation 22 March 2001 at pages 602 to 603 I yearned for the day when I could say 'Taper relief … does exactly what it says on the tin'! I referred to the Revenue's Budget day statement (REV BN4) which promised an article in Tax Bulletin clarifying some of the terms used in the taper relief legislation during the summer.

We now have the promised article. The June 2001 issue of Tax Bulletin has recently been published containing over 5 700 words on taper relief and the Chancellor has also just announced his intention to accelerate the rate of business asset taper relief so that the maximum level of relief will be achievable after as little as two years of ownership for disposals taking place after 5 April 2002. (The mixed use provisions remain...