Budget update: good news for charities (and fans of baked goods)!
Posted: Friday 8 June 2012
A few weeks ago, Charities & Third Sector Law expert, Robin Morton, published an article entitled Is Charitable Giving Really a Form of Tax Avoidance? At that time, the prevailing view seemed to be that philanthropy should not be viewed as an alternative avoidance scheme creating a burden on the State; it seems the Government has finally taken heed of this.
Last week the Government announced a complete U-turn of its proposal to set a cap on tax relief attached to charitable giving. A collective sigh of relief could be heard throughout the Third Sector as it was confirmed that philanthropists will still be entitled to unlimited tax relief in respect of their charitable donations.
The public outcry surrounding the proposal has undoubtedly generated much-needed publicity for charities and the arts: hopefully this will encourage even more people to donate and reverse any initial damage caused by the proposal.
Finally, in other news, it was confirmed that the hotly contested “pasty tax” had also been put on the back-burner. Great news for high street bakers, including Gregg’s who had launched a campaign in protest, although perhaps not so great for waistlines of the general public…
