โNanny stateโ Britain slammed over plans to send HMRC agents into homes | Politics | News
Andy Burnham has received backlash over plans to send HMRC agents into UK homes to assess whether they are liable for the mansion tax. The move has been slammed as “un-British” and representing a “nanny state” from the Government.
Under the proposed plans, the Prime Minister will send HMRC valuation agents into homes to assess whether the value exceeds ยฃ2 million, making it liable for the mansion tax. If homeowners refuse the HMRC inspection, they could be fined up to ยฃ200.
Conservative MP Tom Tugendhat slammed the plans, describing them as “extraordinary” and arguing that they could only come from “a true socialist”.
He told GB News: “It’s pretty extraordinary, isn’t it? The idea that you’re going to have somebody knocking on the door of every house in the UK and trying to check out whether your house is worth a pound more than your neighbours’.
“The idea is so un-British, it is so nanny state, and it is so interventionist state.”
The MP also said that it is “completely insane” and unfair.
He added: “We all know what’s going to happen.
“We’re going to have people who are going to get arrested for not allowing some jobsworth from Whitehall to snoop around their house.
“And how is that fair? Englishmen, Scotsmen, Welshmen and Irishmen should not be faced with the bureaucratic hand of the state trying to get through their front door to tell them what they owe. It’s completely ridiculous.”
The Mansion Tax, or High Value Council Tax Surcharge (HVCTS), will take effect in April 2028. Homeowners, rather than occupiers, will be liable for the surcharge and will continue to pay their existing Council Tax alongside it.
According to HM Treasury, fewer than 1% of properties in England are expected to be above the ยฃ2 million threshold. Revaluations will be conducted every five years.