There were a couple of interesting articles in the FT today. The first was on the issue of Business Property Relief on AIM shares. You only have to hold them for 2 years to get 100% IHT tax relief. Some people consider that too generous and based on FOI Act requests it has been discovered that 68 estates obtained £1.8bn in relief in 2020-2021. In other words, relatively few people who might be classified as very wealthy obtained the relief.
This relief was intended to help family led businesses to remain in the control of the family the same as it is available for unlisted companies. There are a number of possible problems with removing this relief. Firstly it would discourage family controlled businesses from listing on AIM and hence limit their ability to raise equity for expansion. Removing the relief would undermine the careful long-term tax planning of wealthy individuals and there might be a rush to sell AIM holdings thus damaging the AIM market which already has a few problems with poor historic performance.
As a potential beneficiary of this relief I would be very opposed to any change in this area and a desire to raise more tax is hardly a justification for restricting the relief. It would make investing in AIM shares very unattractive as they are already very risky and generally have given poor returns.
The other interesting FT article was on Computerised Brain Implants and explained how they might help disabled people to walk again – for example those with damaged spinal cords. Even Elon Musk has an interest in this new technology field as it is seen as a possible way to enhance people’s intelligence and memory.
I might have found it useful myself a few years ago when I suffered from Intensive Care Neuropathy and had to learn to walk again. Whenever I watch the film Reach for the Sky, which I did again last week, I am reminded of this. This is the story of Douglas Bader who lost both legs in a flying accident but learned to walk and fly again using artificial legs. He rejoined the RAF and fought in the Battle of Britain. A truly great film from 1956 and the story of a very brave man.
Roger Lawson (Twitter: https://twitter.com/RogerWLawson )
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