Finance (No. 3) Bill

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Finance (No. 3) Bill Finance (No. 3) Bill EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON HUMAN RIGHTS The Chancellor of the Exchequer has made the following statement under section 19(1)(a) of the Human Rights Act 1998: In my view the provisions of the Finance (No. 3) Bill are compatible with the Convention rights. Bill 282 57/1 Finance (No. 3) Bill CONTENTS PART 1 DIRECT TAXES Charge to tax 1 Income tax charge for tax year 2019-20 2 Corporation tax charge for financial year 2020 Income tax rates, allowances and limits 3 Main rates of income tax for tax year 2019-20 4 Default and savings rates of income tax for tax year 2019-20 5 Basic rate limit and personal allowance 6 Starting rate limit for savings for tax year 2019-20 Employment and social security income 7 Optional remuneration arrangements: arrangements for cars and vans 8 Exemption for benefit in form of vehicle-battery charging at workplace 9 Exemptions relating to emergency vehicles 10 Exemption for expenses related to travel 11 Beneficiaries of tax-exempt employer-provided pension benefits 12 Tax treatment of social security income Chargeable gains: interests in UK land etc 13 Disposals by non-UK residents etc 14 Disposals of UK land etc: payments on account of capital gains tax International matters 15 Offshore receipts in respect of intangible property 16 Avoidance involving profit fragmentation arrangements 17 Non-UK resident companies carrying on UK property businesses etc 18 Diverted profits tax 19 Hybrid and other mismatches: scope of Chapter 8 and “financial instrument” 20 Controlled foreign companies: finance company exemption and control Bill 282 57/1 ii Finance (No. 3) Bill 21 Permanent establishments: preparatory or auxiliary activities 22 Payment of CGT exit charges 23 Corporation tax exit charges 24 Group relief etc: meaning of “UK related” company Corporation tax: miscellaneous 25 Intangible fixed assets: exceptions to degrouping charges etc 26 Corporation tax relief for carried-forward losses 27 Corporate interest restriction 28 Debtor relationships of company where money lent to connected companies Capital allowances 29 Construction expenditure on buildings and structures 30 Special rate expenditure on plant and machinery 31 Temporary increase in annual investment allowance 32 First-year allowances and first-year tax credits 33 First-year allowance: expenditure on electric vehicle charge points 34 Qualifying expenditure: buildings, structures and land Leases 35 Changes to accounting standards etc Oil activities and petroleum revenue tax 36 Oil activities: transferable tax history 37 Petroleum revenue tax: post-transfer decommissioning expenditure Miscellaneous reliefs 38 Entrepreneurs’ relief 39 Gift aid etc: restrictions on associated benefits 40 Charities: exemption for small trades etc PART 2 OTHER TAXES Stamp duty land tax 41 Relief for first-time buyers in cases of shared ownership 42 Repayment to first-time buyers in cases of shared ownership 43 Higher rates of tax for additional dwellings etc 44 Exemption for financial institutions in resolution 45 Changes to periods for delivering returns and paying tax Stamp duty and SDRT 46 Stamp duty: transfers of listed securities and connected persons 47 SDRT: listed securities and connected persons 48 Stamp duty: exemption for financial institutions in resolution 49 Stamp duty and SDRT: exemptions for share incentive plans Finance (No. 3) Bill iii Value added tax 50 Duty of customers to account for tax on supplies 51 Treatment of vouchers 52 Groups: eligibility Alcohol 53 Rates of duty on cider, wine and made-wine 54 Excise duty on mid-strength cider Tobacco 55 Rates 56 Tobacco for heating Vehicle duties 57 VED: rates for light passenger vehicles, light goods vehicles, motorcycles etc 58 VED: taxis capable of zero emissions 59 HGV road user levy Air passenger duty 60 Rates of duty from 1 April 2020 Gaming 61 Remote gaming duty: rate 62 Gaming duty Environmental taxes 63 Climate change levy: exemption for mineralogical and metallurgical processes 64 Landfill tax rates Inheritance tax 65 Residence nil-rate band Soft drinks industry levy 66 Application of penalty provisions 67 Isle of Man PART 3 CARBON EMISSIONS TAX Introductory 68 Carbon emissions tax iv Finance (No. 3) Bill Charge to tax 69 Charge to carbon emissions tax 70 “Reported carbon emissions” 71 “Emissions report” and “reporting period” 72 “Emissions allowance” 73 Liability to pay carbon emissions tax Administration etc. 74 Power to make further provision about carbon emissions tax 75 Consequential provision General 76 Interpretation 77 Regulations 78 Commencement and transitional provision PART 4 ADMINISTRATION AND ENFORCEMENT Time limits for assessments etc 79 Offshore matters or transfers: income tax and capital gains tax 80 Offshore matters or transfers: inheritance tax Security deposits 81 Construction industry scheme and corporation tax etc International agreements 82 Resolution of double taxation disputes 83 International tax enforcement: disclosable arrangements Payment of unlawful advance corporation tax 84 Interest in respect of unlawful ACT 85 Section 84: supplementary Voluntary returns 86 Voluntary returns Interest 87 Interest under section 178 of FA 1989 and section 101 of FA 2009 Finance (No. 3) Bill v PART 5 MISCELLANEOUS AND FINAL Regulatory capital securities 88 Regulatory capital securities and hybrid capital instruments EU withdrawal 89 Minor amendments in consequence of EU withdrawal Preparatory expenditure 90 Emissions reduction trading scheme: preparatory expenditure Other 91 Interpretation 92 Short title Schedule 1 — Chargeable gains accruing to non-residents etc Part 1 — Extending cases in which non-residents are charged to tax etc Part 2 — Consequential amendments Part 3 — Commencement and transitional provisions etc Schedule 2 — Returns for disposals of UK land etc Part 1 — Returns and payments on account: disposals of UK land etc Part 2 — Notification of chargeable amounts, amendments of returns, enquiries etc Part 3 — Consequential amendments Schedule 3 — Offshore receipts in respect of intangible property Schedule 4 — Avoidance involving profit fragmentation arrangements Schedule 5— Non-UK resident companies carrying on UK property businesses etc Part 1 — Extension of scope of charge Part 2 — Supplementary & Consequential amendments Part 3 — Commencement and transitional provisions Schedule 6 — Diverted profits tax Schedule 7 — Payment of CGT exit charges Schedule 8 — Corporation tax exit charges Part 1 — CT exit charge payment plans Part 2 — Repeal of certain postponement provisions Part 3 — Treatment of assets subject to EU exit charges Schedule 9 — Corporation tax relief for carried-forward losses Schedule 10 — Corporate interest restriction Schedule 11 — Eliminating tax mismatch for certain debt Schedule 12 — Annual investment allowance: periods straddling 1 January 2019 or 1 January 2021 Schedule 13 — Leases: changes to accounting standards etc Part 1— Finance leases: amendments as a result of changes to accounting standards vi Finance (No. 3) Bill Part 2 — Long funding leases Part 3 — Changes to accounting standards and tax adjustments Schedule 14 — Oil activities: transferable tax history Part 1 — Election to transfer tax history Part 2 — The total TTH amount Part 3 — Effect of a TTH election on the seller Part 4 — Effect of a TTH election on the purchaser Part 5 — TTH activation Part 6 — Allocation of activated TTH amount Part 7 — Supplementary charge: recalculation of adjusted ring fence profits Part 8 — TTH elections: conditions and procedure Part 9 — TTH elections: approval Part 10 — TTH elections: effective date and withdrawal Part 11 — TTH elections: inaccuracies Part 12 — Chargeable gains Part 13 — Onward sale Part 14 — Supplementary Part 15 — Interpretation Schedule 15 — Entrepreneurs’ relief Schedule 16 — VAT treatment of vouchers Schedule 17 — VAT groups: eligibility Part 1 — Eligibility of individuals and partnerships Part 2 — Consequential amendments Schedule 18 — Gaming duty Schedule 19 — Taxation of hybrid capital instruments Part 1 — Revocation of special rules for regulatory capital securities Part 2 — Corporation tax, income tax and capital gains tax Part 3 — Stamp duty and stamp duty reserve tax Finance (No. 3) Bill 1 Part 1 — Direct taxes A BILL TO Grant certain duties, to alter other duties, and to amend the law relating to the national debt and the public revenue, and to make further provision in connection with finance. Most Gracious Sovereign E, Your Majesty’s most dutiful and loyal subjects, the Commons of the United Kingdom in Parliament assembled, towards raising the necessary Wsupplies to defray Your Majesty’s public expenses, and making an addition to the public revenue, have freely and voluntarily resolved to give and to grant unto Your Majesty the several duties hereinafter mentioned; and do therefore most humbly beseech Your Majesty that it may be enacted, and be it enacted by the Queen’s most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:— PART 1 DIRECT TAXES Charge to tax 1 Income tax charge for tax year 2019-20 Income tax is charged for the tax year 2019-20. 5 2 Corporation tax charge for financial year 2020 Corporation tax is charged for the financial year 2020. Bill 282 57/1 2 Finance (No. 3) Bill Part 1 — Direct taxes Income tax rates, allowances and limits 3 Main rates of income tax for tax year 2019-20 For the tax year 2019-20 the main rates of income tax are as follows— (a) the basic rate is 20%; (b) the higher rate is 40%; 5 (c) the additional rate is 45%. 4 Default and savings rates of income tax for tax year 2019-20 (1) For the tax year 2019-20 the default rates of income tax are as follows— (a) the default basic rate is 20%; (b) the default higher rate is 40%; 10 (c) the default additional rate is 45%. (2) For the tax year 2019-20 the savings rates of income tax are as follows— (a) the savings basic rate is 20%; (b) the savings higher rate is 40%; (c) the savings additional rate is 45%.
Recommended publications
  • The Stamp Act and Methods of Protest
    Page 33 Chapter 8 The Stamp Act and Methods of Protest espite the many arguments made against it, the Stamp Act was passed and scheduled to be enforced on November 1, 1765. The colonists found ever more vigorous and violent ways to D protest the Act. In Virginia, a tall backwoods lawyer, Patrick Henry, made a fiery speech and pushed five resolutions through the Virginia Assembly. In Boston, an angry mob inspired by Sam Adams and the Sons of Liberty destroyed property belonging to a man rumored to be a Stamp agent and to Lt. Governor Thomas Hutchinson. In New York, delegates from nine colonies, sitting as the Stamp Act Congress, petitioned the King and Parliament for repeal. In Philadelphia, New York, and other seaport towns, merchants pledged not to buy or sell British goods until the hated stamp tax was repealed. This storm of resistance and protest eventually had the desired effect. Stamp sgents hastily resigned their Commissions and not a single stamp was ever sold in the colonies. Meanwhile, British merchants petitioned Parliament to repeal the Stamp Act. In 1766, the law was repealed but replaced with the Declaratory Act, which stated that Parliament had the right to make laws binding on the colonies "in all cases whatsoever." The methods used to protest the Stamp Act raised issues concerning the use of illegal and violent protest, which are considered in this chapter. May: Patrick Henry and the Virginia Resolutions Patrick Henry had been a member of Virginia's House of Burgess (Assembly) for exactly nine days as the May session was drawing to a close.
    [Show full text]
  • IBMYP United States Government the Stamp Act – Background
    IBMYP United States Government denied these charges, and complained of British suspect that the British were intentionally plotting The Stamp Act – Background arrogance and contemptuousness in dealings with to enslave the colonists economically. the colonials. Commentary The French and Indian War – Results British troops also quarreled with colonial civilians, Summary who were often reluctant to provide food and The conflict between British and colonial soldiers shelter to the British, and consistently complained was indicative of the evolving attitudes of the two When the French and Indian War, and its of the troops' poor behavior. Pennsylvania regions toward one another. The colonies began European counterpart, the Seven Years War, Quakers, as pacifists, voted against appropriating to associate all things British with arrogance and officially came to a close with the Treaty of Paris in funds for the war effort, and Massachusetts and condescension, and the British viewed Americans 1763, North America was divided territorially New York also took a stand against the quartering as inept, irresponsible, and primitive. The colonial between the British and Spanish. Britain had of British troops in their colonies. British units in the war were involved primarily in support driven the French from the continent, and Parliament, and King George III, viewed these roles, providing reserve forces in battles and extended its land claims west to the Mississippi actions as antagonistic to the British effort to holding British forts. This way, the more highly River. It seemed that British holdings in North defend imperial territories. trained British professionals could lead the America and all over the world were more secure offensive against the French.
    [Show full text]
  • The Stamp Act Rebellion
    The Stamp Act Rebellion Grade Level: George III (1738-1820) From the “Encyclopedia of Virginia,” this biographical profile offers an overview of the life and achievements of George III during his fifty-one-year reign as king of Great Britain and Ireland. The personal background on George William Frederick includes birth, childhood, education, and experiences growing up in the royal House of Hanover. King George’s responses to events during the Seven Years’ War, the Irish Rebellion, and the French Revolution are analyzed with the help of historical drawings and documents. A “Time Line” from 1663 through 1820 appears at the end. Topic: George III, King of Great Britain, Great Britain--History--18th Language: English Lexile: 1400 century, Great Britain--Politics and government, England--Social life and customs URL: http://www.encyclopediavirginia.org Grade Level: Stamp Act Crisis In 1766, Benjamin Franklin testified to Parliament about the Stamp Act and a month later it was repealed. The Stamp Act sparked the first widespread eruption of anti-British resistance. The primary source documents at this web site will help you understand why Parliament passed the tax and why so many Americans opposed it. The documents show the colonists' first widespread resistance to British authority and how they responded to their first victory in the revolutionary era. Discussion questions are included. Topic: Stamp Act (1765) Language: English Lexile: 1320 URL: http://americainclass.org Grade Level: American History Documents The online presence of the Indiana University's Lilly Library includes the virtual exhibition American History Documents. Complemented by enlargeable images of items from the library's actual collection, this site includes two entries related to the Stamp Act of 1765: the cover pages from An Act for Granting and Applying Certain Stamp Duties and Other Duties, in the British Colonies and Plantations in America, London and New Jersey.
    [Show full text]
  • WEST INDIES Why Did the British West Indies Fail to Support the American Revolt?
    WEST INDIES Why did the British West Indies fail to support the American revolt? Viewpoint: The British West Indies were far too dependent on the mother country economically, socially, and militarily to join the American War of Inde- pendence. Viewpoint: The white inhabitants of the British Caribbean had more conserva- tive views of the English constitution and Empire than those held by Americans. Great Britain possessed twenty-six colonies in the Americas, but only the thirteen mainland colonies rebelled against the mother country in 1775. Why? The refusal of the British West Indies to support the American rebel- lion is puzzling, especially considering that the sugar islands had close social and economic ties with the mainland colonies and shared many of the essential preconditions of the American Revolution (1775-1783). As early as 1651, for example, Barbadians denied Parliament's right to tax them on the grounds that legislation without representation was a violation of their rights as Englishmen. Thirty years later Jamaica's assembly suc- cessfully established its right to legislate in all domestic matters. Like their mainland counterparts, the island colonists during the eighteenth century sought increasing control over internal taxation, the local militia, the islands' defenses, the administering of governmental expenditures, the appointment of local officials, and the executive-decision-making process. The republi- can ideology of the American Revolution and Britain's attempt to subdue the Americans by force intensified these political contests and created a politi- cal and constitutional crisis on some Caribbean islands. Local assemblies made claims of coequality with the House of Commons and usurped execu- tive powers, while some island colonists refused to pay taxes and perse- cuted government officials determined to uphold the Crown's prerogative.
    [Show full text]
  • Events Leading up to the American Revolution the French and Indian War (1754-63) War Fought Between Great Britain and Its Two E
    Events leading up to the American Revolution The French and Indian War (1754-63) War fought between Great Britain and its two enemies, the French and the Indians of North America. Most of the battles were in Canada. American colonists, including George Washington, fought with the British in this war, which lasted from 1754 to 1763. The British won the war and won the right to keep Canada and several other possessions in the New World. The Sugar Act (4/5/1764) 1764 Act that put a three-cent tax on foreign refined sugar and increased taxes on coffee, indigo, and certain kinds of wine. It banned importation of rum and French wines. These taxes affected only a certain part of the population, but the affected merchants were very vocal. Besides, the taxes were enacted (or raised) without the consent of the colonists. This was one of the first instances in which colonists wanted a say in how much they were taxed The Stamp Act (3/22/1765) First direct British tax on American colonists. Instituted in November, 1765. Every newspaper, pamphlet, and other public and legal document had to have a Stamp, or British seal, on it. The Stamp, of course, cost money. The colonists didn't think they should have to pay for something they had been doing for free for many years, and they responded in force, with demonstrations and even with a diplomatic body called the Stamp Act Congress, which delivered its answer to the Crown. Seeing the hostile reaction in the colonies, the British government repealed the Stamp Act in March 1766 but at the same time passed the Declaratory Act, which said that Great Britain was superior (and boss of) the American colonies "in all cases whatsoever." The Stamp Act gave the colonists a target for their rage.
    [Show full text]
  • 1.) Why Were the British Concerned About French Activity in the Ohio River Valley?
    Cause Effect French and Indian War Need to tax for military funds Sugar Act Boycott/ Sons of Liberty Quartering Act­ 1765 Boycott/Sons of Liberty Stamp Act Repealed­ 1766 Stamp Act­1765 Declaratory Act­1766 Townshend Acts­ 1767 Boston Massacre­ 1770 Tea Act­ 1773 Boston Tea Party­ 1773 Boston Tea Party­ 1773 Intolerable Acts­ 1774 Nov 17­9:36 AM Review Questions: 1.) Why were the British concerned about French activity in the Ohio River valley? The British also claimed the Ohio River valley. 2.) What fatal errors did General Edward Braddock make? He tried to fight using tactics that worked in Europe and did not adapt to North American conditions. 3.) What was the outcome of the Battle of Quebec? The British defeated the French, who were no longer able to defend the rest of its North American territory. Nov 17­9:35 AM 1 *1763 ­ Colonists • loyal British subjects • identified with each other more than with Britain • French and Indian War left Britain in debt • British government had to keep troops in North America so France did not try to regain its lost territory and to protect settlers against Native American attacks. Nov 17­10:05 AM The Sugar Act 1764­ Sugar Act passed. It put a duty, or import tax, on several products, including molasses. Nov 17­10:05 AM 2 boycott ­ an organized campaign to refuse to buy certain products ­ of British goods; protests spread to every colony *Smugglers would receive harsh punishments; colonial merchants (who sometimes traded in smuggled goods) protested Nov 17­10:08 AM The Quartering Act • *1765 ­ Quartering Act passed to save money • Britain kept about 10,000 soldiers in colonies • Act required colonists to quarter, or allow soldiers to live in their homes, and provide them with food and other supplies Nov 17­10:05 AM 3 *Colonists protested and complained Parliament was violating their rights Committees of Correspondence • need to keep in closer contact with people in other colonies • Samuel Adams (cousin to John) established the Committee of Correspondence to keep colonists informed of British actions.
    [Show full text]
  • Real Estate II: Issues in Ownership of Real Property
    Global Practice Guide Real Estate II: Issues in Ownership of Real Property A Global Practice Guide prepared by the Lex Mundi Real Estate Group This guide is part of the Lex Mundi Global Practice Guide Series which features substantive overviews of laws, practice areas, and legal and business issues in jurisdictions around the globe. View the complete series at: www.lexmundi.com/GlobalPracticeGuides. Lex Mundi is the world’s leading network of independent law firms with in-depth experience in 100+ countries. Through close collaboration, our member firms are able to offer their clients preferred access to more than 21,000 lawyers worldwide – a global resource of unmatched breadth and depth. Lex Mundi – the law firms that know your markets. www.lexmundi.com About this Guide This multi-part Guide of Issues in Real Estate Investment and Finance presents jurisdictional overviews of real estate investment and financing laws in jurisdictions around the world, covering the following four general topics: Part I -- Foreign Investment Part II -- Ownership of Real Property Part III – Finance Part IV – Leasing Table of Contents Argentina ...................................................................................................................................... 4 Australia ....................................................................................................................................... 6 Austria ..........................................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • TIERED ACTIVITIES Colonists Defy Parliament
    CHAPTER 6 • SECTION 1 which forbade the colonists from settling beyond the Appalachian Moun- tains. Although designed to maintain peace between the colonists and Native Americans, this law angered settlers who hoped to speculate, or buy as an investment, in western lands. In addition, King George decided More About . to keep 10,000 soldiers in the colonies to enforce the proclamation. But housing the troops proved very expensive. Therefore, Parliament passed the Stamp Act Protests Quartering Act, a law that required colonists to house all British soldiers. These new laws created great anxiety in the colonies. The colonists feared Some of the most violent protests to the that Parliament intended to use the troops to control their movements and Stamp Act occurred in New York. There, restrict their freedom. a mob burned an effigy (likeness) of the Parliament Taxes the Colonists In addition to the cost of keeping troops Answer: royal governor and raided some homes. Because in the colonies, Britain owed massive debts from the French and Indian War. Parliament was enforcing Other colonists took a more direct political new laws and restrictions To pay off these debts, Britain needed more revenue, or income. As a result, approach. For example, Benjamin Franklin that threatened the Parliament looked to the colonies to pay part of the costs for frontier defense appeared before Parliament, presenting colonists’ freedom to and colonial government. self-govern. arguments for the repeal of the act. In 1764, Parliament passed the Sugar Act. This law placed a tax on sugar, molasses, and other products shipped to the colonies.
    [Show full text]
  • Road to Revolution
    Road to Revolution 1760-1775 In 1607 The Virginia Company of London, an English trading company, planted the first permanent English settlement in North America at Jamestown. The successful establishment of this colony was no small achievement as the English had attempted to plant a colony in North America since the reign of Queen Elizabeth I in the l6th century. The Virginia Company operated under a royal charter, granted by King James I, which assured the original settlers they would have all liberties, franchises and immunities as if they had been “abiding and born within England.” By 1760, England and Scotland had united into the Kingdom of Great Britain and her settlements in North America had grown to thirteen thriving colonies with strong cultural, economic, and political ties to the mother country. Each colony enjoyed a certain amount of self- government. The ties which bound Great Britain and her American colonies were numerous. Wealthy men in the colonies, such as George Washington, used British trading companies as their agents to conduct business. Young men from prominent families, like Arthur Lee, went to Great Britain to finish their schooling. Colonial churches benefited from ministers who were educated in Great Britain. Many of the brightest men in the colonies, such as Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania, James Otis of Massachusetts, and Peyton Randolph of Virginia, served the British government as appointed officials. What then caused these strong ties to unravel after 1760? What caused the American colonists to revolt against their mother country in 1775? Though not recognized by most people at the time, economic and political forces beginning in 1760 on both sides of the Atlantic would force Great Britain and her American colonies to reassess their long relationship.
    [Show full text]
  • The Impact of the Dutch Example on American Constitutional Beginnings
    laerswijck rX “A New Netherland September 1 Fig. 72. Title page of De Americaanse Almmack (1754) Courtesy of the New Jersey Historical Society, Newark, New Jersey. Rcprlnted from Stephen I,. Schechter and Richard B. Bernstein, New York a.& the Union: Conhibutions lo the American Comstifntional Eqetience (Albany, NY: New York State Commission on tbe Bicentennial 07 the U.S. Constitution, 1980): 22-28. From time to time, colonial governors and administrators in North America considered proposals for unification, primarily for defensive purposes. They looked to Europe for inspiration, finding in the Union of Utrecht a model that had served to regularize the confederation known as the United Provinces of the Netherlands. he Dutch impact on eighteenth-century America has liberty. An abbreviatedDutch text.of the Union had been often been told in terms of Knickerbockers and other reprinted in De Americaanse Almanak for 1754, the only Hudson Valley provincialisms, but the true heart of the surviving relic of a series of forty or fifty New York matter lies in the critical political and economic forces Dutch almanacs.2 The author of the articles began: by which The Netherlands affected the American scene. “These provinces, that is, the Dutch provinces, consist of Foremost were the traditions of union and liberty, sym- a group of commonwealths independent of one another, bolized by the Union of Utrecht, the de facto Dutch though united to protect one another against the common constitution. Emerging most clearly at the time of the enemy.” French and Indian War in the 175Os,the Dutch example, as it was often called, continued its positive impact The bloody and unsettling French and Indian War was through the period of the Continental Congresses,help- at hand.
    [Show full text]
  • The Stamp Act and the Political Origins of American Legal and Economic Institutions
    THE STAMP ACT AND THE POLITICAL ORIGINS OF AMERICAN LEGAL AND ECONOMIC INSTITUTIONS JUSTIN DuRIVAGE & CLAIRE PRIEST* The American colonialprotest againstParliament's Stamp Act was a landmark event in the history of the Founding Era, propelling the colonies toward independence. To date, scholars have focused on colonists' constitutional objections to the Stamp Act. Yet, the Stamp Act taxed legal and institutional services and, as this Article describes, the opposition to the Stamp Act also focused on defending low-cost institutions that served local communities. It examines the arguments for and against the Stamp Act as revealing two distinct visions of the role for institutions in economic growth. It suggests that American independence affirmed colonists' commitment to low-cost locally managed institutions within their developing economy. INTRODUCTION The British Parliament's enactment of the Stamp Act of 1765 is widely acknowledged as a starting point for the acceleration of tensions that led to the Declaration of Independence in 1776.1 In the dominant * Acting Assistant Professor, Stanford University, Department of History and Simeon E. Baldwin Professor, Yale Law School. We appreciate the comments of Owen Fiss, Daniel Klerman, Naomi Lamoreaux, James Livesey, Daniel Markovits, Nicholas Parrillo, Steven Pincus, and Carol Rose. We thank the participants in Yale's Center for Historical Enquiry and the Social Sciences; SELA (Seminario en Latinoamdrica de Teoria Constitucional y Politica), in Lima, Peru, and the participants at the Yale University, Mellon Foundation, Dundee University, and Scottish Centre for Global History conference on Finance, Communication and Coordination in Eighteenth-Century Empires. 1. See, e.g., BRENDAN MCCONVILLE, THE KING'S THREE FACES: THE RISE & FALL OF ROYAL AMERICA, 1688-1776, at 249 (2006); EDMUND S.
    [Show full text]
  • The French and Indian War England and France Both Had Extensive Land Claims in North America
    The French and Indian War England and France both had extensive land claims in North America. Both countries claimed the Ohio Valley territory as their own. In the 1750’s, the French sent troops to occupy the Ohio Valley. They built several forts west of the Appalachians to show that they planned to remain in the Ohio Valley to protect their land. One of the most famous forts was called Fort Duquesne. A young George Washington, a Colonel in the British Army, led 150 British militiamen to capture Fort Duquesne. Washington and his men were outnumbered and soon defeated by the French. The French sent Washington and his men back to British commanders with a message that the Ohio Valley belonged to the French. The British didn’t give up easily. They returned to Fort Duquesne with more troops. The British, as was their custom, marched in straight lines with much noise and fanfare. The French and their Indian allies hid behind rocks and trees. They fired on the British troops from their hiding places. The British were again defeated. The British did have some assistance from Native American groups. However, this assistance was not enough to help them defeat the French right away. The British continued to fight the French but mostly to the north, in Canada. The French were finally defeated and signed the Treaty of Paris in 1763. In this treaty, the French surrendered all of their land claims in North America. Ohio Valley Made with Love by: Jenifer Bazzit The Proclamation of 1763 A Proclamation is defined as “an official statement or announcement made by a person in power.” As a result of the French and Indian War, the British drove the French out of North America.
    [Show full text]