No to tax on knowledge
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THE GOVERNMENT may have been forced by a backbench revolt to climb down on cuts to minimum grants to students, but it still seems intent on taxing knowledge.
It is widely believed that the Chancellor is considering imposing value-added tax on newspapers and periodicals. According to the Periodical Publishers Association, such a move would turn the clock back 130 years — to when the last tax on regular publications was repealed. Ever since then, says the PPA, all Governments have agreed the principle that a free press is a tax-free press.
Publishing is under considerable financial pressure and margins. Few Publishing houses would be able to absorb the additional costs of the imposition of vat on magazines and journals.
For CM it would probably mean an extra 10p on the cover price, and advertisement rates would also have to increase in proportion.