Debated in-house

ALLISON PLAGER reports the Finance Bill's progress in the House of Commons.

THE FINANCE BILL received its second reading in the House of Commons on 7 June. A lengthy debate took place although much of this was devoted to new MPs' maiden speeches nine in all. Little of much note or import was said in the debate it being mainly political jostling and posturing. However it was aptly described as an anti-avoidance bill and among two other matters which in particular seemed to have attracted MPs' attention were the new rules relating to self-invested personal pensions investing in residential property and the tightening of gift aid on admissions.
With regard to the former Dawn Primarolo said that pension schemes which used property as part of a pension fund were to be 'very tightly controlled'.

In committee

The Finance Bill moved on to be...