ABOLISH STAMP DUTY IN EAST CAMBRDGESHIRE AND SAVE £6,942, SAY LOCAL CONSERVATIVES
· The Conservatives’ plan to abolish stamp duty on the family home could save families in East Cambridgeshire £6,942, where the average house price is £338,848.
· The plan will make it cheaper for older people to downsize, easier for young people to get on the housing ladder and reduce the costs for young couples who want to start a family.
· The tax cut, a key part of the Plan for Stronger Economy, is fully funded by spending cuts and backed by our Golden Economic Rule to cut spending and reduce the deficit.
NEW analysis has found that, under plans set out by the Conservative Party, families in East Cambridgeshire could save £6,942 when moving home.
Housing has become unaffordable for many, including large numbers of young people, hoping to get a foot on the housing ladder. Stamp duty is a bad tax that makes the process of purchasing a home more expensive. It also stops older people from downsizing and prevents young couples who want to start a family from buying a bigger home.
That is why in October last year, Kemi Badenoch announced that a future Conservative Government would abolish stamp duty on the family home.
The ambitious plan – is fully funded by cuts that the Conservative Party will make to the unsustainable welfare bill and other areas of public spending – will get the market moving by releasing hundreds of thousands of homes.
Research suggests up to 2 million people would consider downsizing in the next five years if stamp duty were abolished. Even if only half of them did, that would mean a million additional homes becoming available to buy, boosting economic activity and the stake people have in our economy – leading to a stronger economy.
Abolishing stamp duty would also give a huge boost to local economies struggling under the weight of Labour’s tax raids. Every house sale brings with it extra income for local businesses – builders, decorators, removal firms and more – with research suggesting the Conservative plans could give a £1.2 billion boost to these companies.
With Labour failing abysmally to build new homes and their 1.5 million homes target disappearing into the far distance, radical steps are needed to get the market moving again. Only the Conservatives have the plan to deliver them.
Ely and East Cambridgeshire Conservative Association said:
“The Conservative Party’s plan to scrap Stamp Duty on the family home is a moral and economic good.
“Our plans will remove barriers on home ownership and aspiration, and give families the freedom to move, grow, or downsize their homes. New analysis shows it could save families £6,942 in East Cambridgeshire alone. This is a complete game-changer for young people in East Cambs.
“Labour are failing dismally to deliver the housing transformation they promised. Reform have no plan at all. The Liberal Democrats voted against our plan. The Conservatives are the only party that will get the housing market moving and help people achieve the dream of home-ownership.”
Sir James Cleverly MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, said:
“Stamp duty is a bad tax. It is a tax on aspiration, on working hard and investing to provide security for your family. And it stops people setting down roots in their communities.
“These latest figures reveal once again the heavy burden stamp duty is placing on first-time buyers on Labour’s watch. Combined with total failure to deliver new homes, these costs are stopping people from realising the dream of home-ownership.
“Only the Conservatives will scrap stamp duty on the family home, getting the market moving and giving young people a leg up onto the housing ladder.”
· How stamp duty currently works. You incur Stamp Duty Land Tax on increasing portions of property price when you buy a residential property in England and Northern Ireland. The following rates apply to ‘primary residence’ or family home, if you own another property, you pay five per cent on top. Therefore, the average House Price of £292,000 incurs a stamp duty liability of £4,600 (1.6 per cent effective rate). First-time buyers receive relief of zero per cent on values up to £300,000(MHCLG, House Price Index, 18 February 2026, link; MHCLG, Stamp Duty Land Tax, accessed 12 March 2026, link).
The Conservatives will abolish Stamp Duty on the family home:
· The Conservatives will abolish stamp duty entirely on primary residences. Stamp duty land tax (SDLT), which is paid when you buy a property or land in England and Northern Ireland, will be abolished for primary residences. This policy will apply irrespective of purchase price for primary residences. It will not apply to additional properties, properties purchased by companies, or by non-UK residents. Our policy will support first time buyers purchasing a home above £300,000.
· This policy would cost £9 billion, funded through our plan to deliver £47 billion of savings. According to the IFS, abolishing Stamp Duty on people’s primary residence would cost around £4.5 billion at present. But due to the dramatic tax increase Rachel Reeves is planning, the Conservatives have cautiously costed the abolition of the tax at £9 billion in 2029-30 (IFS, Article, 22 January 2024, link).
· 48 per cent of people said that stamp duty was a barrier when it came to buying or selling a home in a poll. In a Survation poll that asked about the associated costs to buying a home, 48 per cent (NET: Barrier: a major barrier and a moderate barrier) said that stamp duty was a barrier to them personally when it comes to buying or selling a home (Survation on behalf of 38 Degrees, Survation – Conservatives – Stamp Duty, 31 October 2025).
· UK Government House Price data showed that the average house price in England was £292,000 in December 2025. This is £5,000 more than 12 months ago. Average house prices in the 12 months to December 2025 increased in England to £292,000 (a 1.7 per cent increase) (HM Land Registry, UK House Price Index summary: December 2025, 18 February 2026, link).
Labour are failing to deliver the homes the country needs:
· Both the Office for Budget Responsibility and the Home Builders Federation of developers have said that Labour will miss its pledge of building 1.5 million homes by 2029. The OBR have predicted that net additions to UK Housing stock are expected to fall from an average of 260,000 a year in the early 2020s to a low of 220,000 in 2026-27 (OBR, Economic and Fiscal Outlook, 3 March 2026, link, BBC News, 29 October 2025, link).
