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THE Home Office waged a seven-year war against its own tax rates, attempting to shave nearly £16 million off the amount it pays for its headquarters, official documents show.
Valuation tribunal decision documents disclosed today show that the Home Office first lodged an appeal against the £25 million rateable value in 2010, hoping to slash it down to £19.1m, but that was dismissed in March.
The department eventually lost its lengthy battle against the level of property taxes it pays for the site at 2 Marsham Street in Westminster earlier this year.
A sharp rise in public-sector investment is required to kick-start the economy, argues MICHAEL BURKE
In part IV of a serialisation of his new book, JOHN McINALLY tells how austerity minister Francis Maude’s attempt to destroy the PCS Civil Service union totally backfired
CAROL WILCOX argues for the proper implementation of the land value tax, which could see unused plots sold off and landlords priced out of landlordism, potentially resolving the housing and planning crises