Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the annual cost to the Exchequer of the tax foregone due to tax relief on charity investment income (1) in the last year, and (2) over the last five years; and what is the breakdown of the total cost over the last five years per taxpayer, per year.
Tax relief is available on donations to charity by individuals and organisations, and to charities for their activities, including investment income.
Information about tax relief on charities’ investment income, and on charitable donations by organisations is not readily available.
Estimates for tax reliefs on charitable donations by individuals are published in “UK charity tax relief statistics”. The table below is an extract from the latest edition.
Extract from Table 2: Estimates for UK charities tax reliefs. Updated June 2018. Restricted to those reliefs for which accurate figures can be estimated
£m | Reliefs paid to charities | Reliefs paid to individuals | ||||
Tax Year | Gift Aid | Gift Aid Small Donations Scheme | Inheritance Tax | Payroll Giving | Gifts of shares and property | Higher Rate Relief on Gift Aid |
2013-14 | 1060 | 10 | 660 | 40 | 60 | 410 |
2014-15 | 1210 | 20 | 700 | 40 | 60 | 480 |
2015-16 | 1300 | 30 | 800 | 40 | 70 | 500 |
2016-17 | 1280 | 30 | 840 | 40 | 70 | 490 |
2017-18 | 1270 | 30 | 860 | 40 | 70 | 490 |