While the Heritage Alliance Tax Working Group tends to move slowly, it is one of the most important bodies that the Club is a part of. Today’s meeting on the 30th of November made another step forward in pursuing tax relief for listed building owners across the UK.

The present goal is to develop a robust, evidence backed case to take to the treasury, in partnership with Historic England, which makes an iron clad argument in favour of tax relief. Perhaps inevitably this is a time consuming and tedious process, but it aims to answer the criticisms of tax relief schemes that have previously been proposed by demonstrating the wider economic value of heritage.

While it is always frustrating to see months passing with seemingly little progress, the end goal remains clear – VAT relief on listed buildings.

The group also discussed the changed political landscape since the arrival of the new administration. All bodies, the Club included, have found the new minister Robert Jenrick to be very sympathetic and keen to pursue small scale projects such as pilot schemes.