Thanet Conservatives recognised in National Award to scrap empty property tax But Laura Sandys and Roger Gale warn that there is more work to be done

South Thanet’s Tory Laura Sandys and North Thanet’s Roger Gale were recognised as leading campaigners against the Government’s empty property tax when the Scrap Empty Property Tax Campaign won Public Affairs News’s Campaign of the Year this month.

The Government was pressurised into a U Turn on their taxation of empty properties for those with less than a rateable value of £15,000 due to the campaigning nationally and in Thanet, Sandwich and Herne Bay.

“The campaign would not have been possible without the support of Roger Gale MP and Laura Sandys PPC, who understand the damage this tax is causing her local high street. It is the real damage that this unfair tax causes that we are fighting against. We are fighting to protect businesses and jobs during the recession.” Said Liz Peace, Director of the British Property Federation.

“It has been a hard won battle with the Government desire to tax empty properties across East Kent at a time when letting properties has become so very difficult. We were thrilled when the Government announced their U-Turn but there is still a lot of work to do to ensure that larger empty properties are also exempted from this tax.” Said Laura Sandys, Conservative Parliamentary Candidate for South Thanet and Sandwich.

“With our high streets being featured as some of the most depressed in the country, this is not the time for additional taxation. We will fight on to get the government to relieve all our empty property from taxation to ensure that East Kent buildings do not join the 15 million square foot of property that has been demolished due to landlords not being able to afford the tax on unoccupied buildings.” Said Roger Gale MP for North Thanet and Herne Bay.

Photograph: Meeting between Sandys and Gale with small landlords at a large industrial property that is being taxed although empty.