Kirstie Allsopp has waded into the row over Britain’s property tax system after fresh speculation over a potential overhaul.
The Location, Location, Location presenter criticised Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s past support for a proportional property tax (PPT), warning it would deepen divisions between the North and South of England rather than solve them.
Her intervention comes after the Labour leader sought to dampen speculation that his Government was preparing to abolish stamp duty, insisting reports suggesting major reforms were being considered were simply “not the case”.
Writing on X, Ms Allsopp reflected on more than two decades spent travelling the country through her television work.
She wrote: “It’s the privilege of my life to have seen every county in my country. To have worked for 26 years finding homes for people all across the UK.”
The presenter said her experience had shown that prosperity and deprivation exist in every region, arguing it was wrong to frame housing policy as a battle between North and South.
“I know that council tax isn’t fair, and that Stamp Duty is madness,” she wrote.
“But I also know that a tax based on the value of a property is no fairer and that having a PM who seems to be fostering a North South divide is a very bad idea, we have enough division as it is.”
Ms Allsopp went on to compare two homes to illustrate her concerns.
She contrasted a three-bedroom terraced house in Manchester worth £335,000, which she calculated would face an annual property tax bill of £1,608 under a 0.48 per cent levy, with a similarly sized property in Shepherd’s Bush valued at £900,000, where the equivalent charge would rise to £4,320.
She also noted that the Manchester property came with both off-street parking and a garden.
The debate follows renewed scrutiny of Mr Burnham’s previous backing for the Fairer Share campaign’s proposed property tax, which would replace both council tax and stamp duty with an annual levy based on a home’s value.
According to the proposal, the tax would be charged at 0.48 per cent of a property’s value, with London expected to shoulder the largest increase in payments.
Downing Street has denied the reforms are currently under active consideration, despite the Prime Minister recently describing Rachel Reeves’ council tax reforms as “a start” towards creating a fairer system.
Ms Allsopp’s comments divided opinion online.
One user replied to her post on X, saying: “Tell me why I pay the same (roughly) in council tax as London but earn roughly 30% less to pay the council tax?”
Another questioned why opposition had only emerged now, writing: “With respect, I didn’t hear you kicking up such a fuss when a very large share of public money and investment over many years was spent in the South part of the North/South divide.”
A third penned: “There’s no need for all this upset if we simply have the political will to work smarter and not create a divide.”
