Loyd Grossman is on the warpath, and he’s got George Osborne in his sights. The former MasterChef host and pasta-sauce magnate is also the chairman of The Heritage Alliance, and he wants the Chancellor to scrap VAT on the restoration of old buildings.
Earlier this year Osborne announced that £20 million would be set aside for the restoration of Britain’s cathedrals in advance of First World War commemorations but Grossman thinks that he’s missing the bigger picture.
“Can no government grasp the value of heritage and do something positive?” he asks in the new issue of Prospect. In his silkily written tones, he spells out the economic argument to George. “If we must talk about money, let’s reiterate the fact that heritage is the most significant driver of our booming, prosperous, awash-with-foreign-exchange tourism industry — the fifth-largest industry in the UK.”
“So, dear Chancellor, if you are reading this… please think about getting rid of the ridiculous VAT regime which slaps a full rate of tax on the repair and maintenance of old buildings but levies zero per cent on new-build and demolition. Go figure.”
Conservation bodies have had their funding cut by 20 per cent by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, with English Heritage’s finance now largely dependent on private funding. Grossman’s Heritage Alliance is an umbrella body for a number of institutions.
The only thing missing from the ex-Through the Keyhole host’s well-made argument is the question: “Whooo pays VAT on a property like this?”
