Finance Bill

Finance Bill - continued	House of Commons

back to previous text

SCHEDULE 17

CAPITAL ALLOWANCES: ENERGY-SAVING PLANT AND MACHINERY

1. In section 39 of the Capital Allowances Act 2001 (first-year allowances available for certain types of expenditure only), at the end add-

	" , or
	section 45A expenditure on energy-saving plant or machinery.".

2. After section 45 of that Act insert-

"Expenditure on energy-saving plant or machinery	45A. - (1) Expenditure is first-year qualifying expenditure if-
	(a) it is expenditure on energy-saving plant or machinery that is unused and not second-hand,
	(b) it is incurred on or after 1st April 2001, and
	(c) it is not excluded by section 46 (general exclusions).
	(2) Energy-saving plant or machinery means plant or machinery in relation to which the following conditions are met-
	(a) when the expenditure is incurred, or
	(b) when the contract for the provision of the plant or machinery is entered into.
	(3) The conditions are that the plant or machinery-
	(a) is of a description specified by Treasury order, and
	(b) meets the energy-saving criteria specified by Treasury order for plant or machinery of that description.
	(4) Any such order may make provision by reference to any technology list, or product list, issued by the Secretary of State (whether before or after the coming into force of this section).
Certification of energy-saving plant and machinery	45B. - (1) The Treasury may by order provide that, in such cases as may be specified in the order, no section 45A allowance may be made unless a relevant certificate of energy efficiency is in force.
	A "section 45A allowance" means a first-year allowance in respect of expenditure that is first-year qualifying expenditure under section 45A.
	(2) A certificate of energy efficiency is one certifying that-
	(a) particular plant or machinery, or
	(b) plant or machinery constructed to a particular design,
	meets the energy-saving criteria specified in relation to that description of plant or machinery by order under section 45A.
	(3) A relevant certificate of energy efficiency means one issued-
	(a) by the Secretary of State or a person authorised by the Secretary of State;
	(b) in the case of plant or machinery used or for use in Scotland, by the Scottish Ministers or a person authorised by them;
	(c) in the case of plant or machinery used or for use in Wales, by the National Assembly for Wales or a person authorised by it;
	(d) in the case of plant or machinery used or for use in Northern Ireland, by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment in Northern Ireland or a person authorised by it.
	(4) If a certificate of energy efficiency is revoked-
	(a) the certificate is to be treated for the purposes of this section as if it had never been issued, and
	(b) all such assessments and adjustments of assessments are to be made as are necessary as a result of the revocation.
	(5) If a person who has made a tax return becomes aware that, as a result of the revocation of a certificate of energy efficiency after the return was made, the return has become incorrect, he must give notice to the Inland Revenue specifying how the return needs to be amended.
	(6) The notice must be given within 3 months beginning with the day on which the person first became aware that anything in the tax return had become incorrect because of the revocation of the certificate.
Energy-saving components of plant or machinery	45C. - (1) This section applies for the purpose of apportioning expenditure incurred on plant or machinery if one or more components of the plant or machinery (but not all of it) is of a description specified by Treasury order under section 45A(3).
	(2) If-
	(a) only one of the components is of such a description, and
	(b) an amount is specified by the order in respect of that component,
	the part of the expenditure that is section 45A expenditure must not exceed that amount.
	(3) If-
	(a) more than one of the components is of such a description, and
	(b) an amount is specified by the order in respect of each of those components,
	the part of the expenditure that is section 45A expenditure must not exceed the total of those amounts.
	(4) If the expenditure is treated under this Act as incurred in instalments, the proportion of each instalment that is section 45A expenditure is the same as the proportion of the whole of the expenditure that is section 45A expenditure.
	(5) If this section applies, the expenditure is not apportioned under section 562(3) (apportionment where property sold with other property).
	(6) In this section "section 45A expenditure" means expenditure that is first-year qualifying expenditure under section 45A.".

3. In section 46(1) of that Act (cases in which expenditure is not first-year qualifying expenditure), at the end add-

	" , or
	section 45A (expenditure on energy-saving plant or machinery).".

4. In section 52(3) of that Act (amount of first-year allowances), in the Table, at the end add-

"Expenditure qualifying under section 45A (expenditure on energy-saving plant or machinery)

100%."

5. In the second column of the Table in section 98 of the Taxes Management Act 1970 (penalty for failure to provide information etc.), in the entry relating to requirements imposed by provisions of the Capital Allowances Act 2001, after "43(5) and (6)," insert "45B(5) and (6),".

6. - (1) For the purposes of section 45A(2) of the Capital Allowances Act 2001, if-

(a) expenditure on plant or machinery is incurred, or a contract for the provision of plant or machinery is entered into, before the first order is made under section 45A(3) of that Act; and

(b) if that order had been made before the relevant time, the conditions in section 45A(3) of that Act would have been met,

those conditions shall be treated as if they were met at the relevant time.

(2) In sub-paragraph (1) "the relevant time" means the time when the expenditure was incurred or (as the case may be) the contract was entered into.

Prepared 30 March 2001