Tories say they would end Welsh version of stamp duty

The Conservatives will scrap the Welsh version of stamp duty on the purchase of main homes should they win next May's Senedd election, the party has said.

Welsh Tory Senedd leader Darren Millar said the land transaction tax (LTT) "must be scrapped to get our housing market and economy moving".

It comes after UK Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch surprised her party's conference by announcing the policy for England and Northern Ireland.

Stamp duty has been controlled by the Welsh government since the Conservatives handed over the power to Labour ministers in 2018.

In Wales there is no first-time buyers relief and there are different rates to England.

LTT raised £147m from the sale of "primary residences" - as opposed to second properties which attract a higher rate - in the year to April.

Main residential tax rates have not changed in Wales since 2022. Currently homes worth up to £225,000 pay no LTT, while those who buy a home worth £225,000 to £400,000 pay 6%.

Above £400,000 to £750,000, the rate is 7.5%, and higher rates are charged for more expensive properties.

The Welsh Conservatives said the party would use funding that Finance Secretary Mark Drakeford said he would leave unallocated in next year's budget, worth £400m, to cover the cost of abolishing the tax.

Millar said: "The aspiration-sapping Welsh stamp duty must be scrapped to get our housing market and economy moving, and to give people the dignity of owning their own home.

"I want Wales to be a home-owning democracy where everyone has a stake in their local community, and more money in their own pockets."

Badenoch told the Conservative conference in Manchester that abolishing stamp duty would "help achieve the dream of home ownership for millions", and would "unlock a fairer and more aspirational society".