Peter Ainsworth has today expressed concern the Council Tax inspectors are to be granted intrusive new powers which allow them to enter people’s home to identify features which could be taxed.
The Government’s new council tax revaluation exercise, which is currently being piloted in Northern Ireland,will also mean that every home in the country faces photographs of their home – inside and outside – being stored on a computer database. The information will then be used to evaluate how much council tax each household will pay.
Peter Ainsworth said:
“I am very concerned that the privacy and property of honest, law-abiding citizens in East Surrey is under threat. I also fear the photographs taken by these tax inspectors will be used to hike taxes on family homes – by taxing features like conservatories, extensions, gardens and patios. This is an unfair tax on home improvements and the powers of entry for inspectors should be abolished.”
He went on to say:
“It also represents a potentially serious security threat. In the wrong hands, the photos of the inside of people’s houses would be a gift to burglars.”
ENDS
Notes to editors
TAX INSPECTORS SNOOPING ON YOUR HOME THROUGH ESTATE AGENTS
The Valuation Office Agency, an arm of HM Revenue & Customs, is using taxpayers’ money to grab information on the outside and inside of people’s homes – by buying up the data from estate agents Rightmove. Unsuspecting homeowners put their property on the market without realising that the tax snoopers will be using it to hike up council tax bills.
“Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what property attributes and datasets the Valuation Office Agency's market comparable reporting tool licensed from Rightmove holds.
Mr. Woolas: “Market Comparable Reporting Tool” is the name given by Rightmove.co.uk plc to its database of properties that were advertised for sale on the Rightmove website. The Valuation Office Agency has access to this information, which for each property was freely available publicly for the period during which it was being marketed.”
Hansard, 23 January 2007, col. 1731W.
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200607/cmhansrd/cm070123/text/70123w0025.htm#07012380000116
“Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether the data provided to the Valuation Office Agency by Rightmove.co.uk includes the provision of photographs of properties.
Mr. Woolas: Rightmove.co.uk plc does not provide data to the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) but makes information accessible to VOA staff through a web link. This information includes photographs of properties, but such photographs are only for viewing and are not copied by the VOA.”
Hansard, 18 January 2007, col. 1327W.
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200607/cmhansrd/cm070118/text/70118w0019.htm#07011876000026
TWO MILLION PHOTOGRAPHS ALREADY HEAD – AND RISING
The Valuation Office Agency is also rolling out a computer database of every property in Britain. In May, the database held half a million photographs. The Government now says that the database holds over two million photographs.
“Mr. Pickles: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many domestic properties in England have photographs allocated to the address by the Valuation Office Agency as part of their council tax valuation records.
Mr. Woolas: I have been asked to reply. Of the 22 million domestic property records in England, some 2.5 per cent. (549,000) have a photograph or photographs attached.”
Hansard, 15 May 2006, col. 713W.
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200506/cmhansrd/cm060515/text/60515w28.htm
“Mr. Pickles: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many photographs are stored on the Valuation Office Agency’s central database.
Dawn Primarolo: There are 25 million records for business and domestic properties there are 2.2 million photographs as at 20 November 2006.”
Hansard, 16 January 2007, col. 1025W.
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200607/cmhansrd/cm070116/text/70116w0015.htm#column_1025W
There is no limit to number of photographs that the database can hold.
“Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the technical limit is of the number of photographs that the Valuation Office Agency’s digital photography application can hold.
Mr. Woolas: There is no technical limit on the number of photographs that can be held by the Valuation Office Agency’s digital photography application.”
Hansard, 19 June 2006, col, 601W.
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200506/cmhansrd/cm060619/text/60619w1031.htm
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