Manchester (Parliament Politics Magazine) – Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has pledged to abolish stamp duty on primary residences if the party wins the next general election, calling it an “un-Conservative” tax. The move aims to boost home ownership and social mobility but raises questions about the £9 billion cost and impact on government revenue.
Badenoch announces plan to abolish stamp duty
During her keynote speech at the Conservative Party Conference in Manchester on 7 October 2025, Kemi Badenoch declared that a future Conservative government would scrap stamp duty on purchases of primary homes across England and Northern Ireland. She described the tax as “bad” and “un-Conservative,” asserting that abolition is necessary to free up the housing market and promote social mobility. Badenoch emphasised, “The last Conservative government cut stamp duty for thousands of homebuyers. But now, we must go further”.
Scope of the abolition and exclusions
Badenoch clarified that the stamp duty abolition would only apply to primary residences; landlords, second home purchasers, corporate property buyers, and non-UK residents would still pay tax on additional properties. This approach aims to target relief at ordinary homebuyers rather than investors. According to Badenoch, “We must free up our housing market, because a society where no one can afford to buy or move is a society where social mobility is dead”.
Economic implications and revenue loss concerns
The tax, which currently applies to property purchases above £125,000 with rising rates for higher-price homes, generated approximately £13.9 billion for the Treasury in the last financial year. The Institute for Fiscal Studies estimates abolishing stamp duty on primary homes could cost the government around £4.5 billion, though Conservative calculations put the potential cost at about £9 billion.
Experts warn the government would need to find alternate revenue sources or cut public spending to balance the loss. Badenoch expressed confidence that funding would come partly from welfare budget savings and reduced foreign aid, which the Conservatives recently pledged to cut.
Political motives and criticisms
Badenoch’s announcement comes as the Conservative Party trails behind Labour and Reform UK in polls. The pledge to scrap stamp duty is seen as a strategy to regain voter support by appealing to aspiring homeowners frustrated by the high costs of buying and moving. Several Tory MPs, including Andrew Griffith, endorsed the move, describing stamp duty as a decades-old barrier introduced by Labour.
However, critics argue this policy might not be enough to reverse the party’s fortunes. Some suggest the loss in tax revenue could hamper public services or lead to increased debt. Opponents also highlight that scrapping stamp duty favoring primary homes does little for the wider housing market affordability crisis.
Additional policy proposals unveiled
Alongside the stamp duty abolition, Badenoch presented a broader set of tax cuts and reforms including:
- Abolishing VAT on private school fees
- Reversing Labour’s changes to inheritance tax on farms (dubbed the “tractor tax”)
- Banning doctors’ strikes amid NHS crisis
- Scrapping the carbon tax on electricity bills
- Tripling police stop-and-search in crime hotspots
- Ending “rip-off” university courses and bolstering apprenticeships
- Cutting welfare spending and withdrawing the UK from the European Convention on Human Rights
These policies collectively form Badenoch’s “blueprint for Britain,” aiming to distinguish Conservatives from Labour’s “weak and directionless” government, as she described.
Public and market reaction
The stamp duty abolition has been welcomed by many economists and property market experts as a potential stimulus for sluggish housing transactions. Stuart Cheetham, CEO of mortgage lender MPowered, said scrapping stamp duty would deliver a “huge caffeine jolt” to the market, although he questioned whether this alone could secure a Tory election victory.
Public response is mixed, with potential buyers hopeful for relief but some cautious about the policy’s sustainability and overall impact on housing supply and prices.
Kemi Badenoch’s announcement to scrap stamp duty on primary residences represents a bold policy move to boost homeownership and social mobility, marking a significant departure from previous Conservative approaches. While it resonates with many aspiring buyers, the challenge remains balancing the substantial fiscal costs and addressing broader housing market issues ahead of the 2026 general election.