Defibrillators: VAT
The question
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of removing VAT from defibrillator sales in (a) Newcastle-under-Lyme, (b) Staffordshire and (c) England.
Answered by James Murray
The Government currently provides VAT reliefs to aid the purchase of defibrillators. For example, when an AED is purchased with funds provided by a charity and then donated to an eligible body no VAT is charged. Furthermore, all state schools in England have been fitted with AEDs.
VAT is the UK's second largest tax forecast to raise £176 billion in 2024/25, and taxation is a vital source of revenue which helps to fund public services. Tax breaks reduce this revenue and must represent value for money for the tax payer. Evidence suggests that businesses only partially pass on any VAT reliefs to the consumer.
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