LBTT contribution falls short of Scottish government forecast by £55m

The Land & Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT) has fallen short of its predicted contribution to the Scottish budget by more than 10 per cent, figures published today show.

The LBTT, which has been blamed for declining sales in the middle and top ends of the housing market since its introduction in 2015, produced £483 million for the Scottish budget, significantly below the Scottish government’s forecast of £538m.

The figures were in the 2016/17 Revenue Scotland report.

Commenting on the report, Moira Kelly, Chair of the CIOT Scotland Technical Committee, said: “…while Revenue Scotland has overseen increases in the overall amount of LBTT and SLfT generated, it’s impossible not to note the discrepancies between the actual amount of LBTT generated and the amount that was initially forecasted by Scottish Ministers in the budget for 2016/17.

“Forecasting is – as we often hear – a very inexact science, but these figures are likely to fuel further concerns relating to the vulnerability of LBTT receipts and the potential impact that this may have on future Scottish budgets.”

Scottish Conservative shadow finance secretary Murdo Fraser said: “Not only is the SNP’s stamp duty changes harming those who want to move up the property ladder, it’s hitting the public purse too.

“The SNP set the rates too high, and that’s jammed up the market.

“That makes it tougher right across the housing market, including first time buyers, and costs tens of millions in tax receipts.

“The SNP was warned about these implications, but chose to ignore them.”