The Daily Mail reports-
Horse owners attack £7m 'stealth tax'
Horse owners last night rounded on the Government over plans to introduce a "stealth tax" on every horse and pony in the country.
Under proposals, millions of families, trainers and breeders would be forced to pay £10.50 per year for every horse they own.
Labour claimed the levy, which would generate more the £6.8million per year, would help fund a £56million animal health quango to improve the way outbreaks of disease are handled in the countryside.
It would oversee livestock in England, with horses attracting the highest charge.
Horse groups and experts claimed the proposals were ill-thought-out and a waste of taxpayers' money.
They estimated the Government would spend £14million getting up the horse registration scheme alone and almost a third of all money collected - £2.3million- to administer the levy each year.
Six of the country's leading horse groups, including the British Equine Veterinary Association, have set up a campaign group to lobby against the tax.
Graham Cory, chief executive of the British Horse Society, which is backing the Rethink the Horse Tax Campaign, said: 'The policy is not something taxpayers have called for and seems totally out of touch with industry and the public.'
The proposals were drawn up by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in response to a report into the foot-and-mouth outbreak in 2001.
The department claimed around £44million per year was spent on controlling diseases in livestock and a body was needed to shift the financial burden from the taxpayer. A draft Bill for legislation is due to be published in Spring.
Rethink the Horse Tax petition to the Prime Minister: http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/Horse-Rethink/?
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