Letter F – Letter to MP - general
To find your MP, search on Google at ‘who is my MP’ and for a simple postcode search. This gives the address of the MP’s constituency office and email, or write to your MP at:House of Commons, London, SW1A0AA. Do add details about your own club, business or player profile!
Dear
20% VAT and sport – REDUCE VAT in SPORT to 5%
There is a serious issue of VAT in sport.
Some people pay no VAT. That’s if they play at a club where the members own the facilities or if they play at some Leisure Trust (Charity) facilities.
Other people have to pay 20% VAT on their sport. You always have to pay 20% VAT on sport at commercially owned sports clubs and centres. That’s not fair on the players because it increases prices and it isn’t fair on the owners because it makes them uncompetitive.
Clubs that hire courts and pitches usually have to pay 20% VAT on those hire charges. And that isn’t fair. Hire a sports hall for sport and there is VAT of 20%; hire it for a meeting or some non-sporting event and it is VAT exempt. This is a real tax on sport. Is this the OLYMPIC LEGACY?
Europe’s VAT rules say that countries can adopt REDUCED RATE VAT (which in the UK would be 5%) for various things, including playing sport. Other countries, including the Irish Republic, have adopted this. The UK has not.
The Government wants more people playing sport. Cutting the VAT rate for playing sport from 20% to 5% would make a real difference and should be the OLYMPIC LEGACY. Europe’s VAT rules also allow REDUCED RATE VAT for watching sport. So sports fans could benefit from 5% too.
I hope you will agree that the UK must adopt REDUCED RATE VAT in SPORT because of the distortion of some sports players paying no VAT and some paying 20%. Please support the REDUCE VAT in SPORT campaign and raise the issue in Parliament.
You can see the more about the campaign on the REDUCE VAT website at
Yours sincerely,