The Housing Policy and Oversight Committee, chaired by Sir Vince Cable, urges the OBR to assess the market impact of each budget measure, including the Your First Home scheme that Chancellor John Healey is expected to detail later this month. The committee supports the scheme but wants a lower developer contribution from SMEs, a fast-tracked application process to avoid a market slowdown, and warns that a digital system could delay rollout. It also proposes restoring the Covid-19-era stamp duty threshold, when purchases below £500,000 were exempt, or exempting first-time buyers and downsizers, and abolishing VAT on extension and refurbishment work. On planning, it says the one-size-fits-all approach disadvantages SMEs and recommends exempting smaller sites from some non-safety regulations.
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