Has new VAT rate started ?!

blackbearbosin

I've been out of the country for a few weeks and have just visited my local supermarkets. Looking round the shelves it appears that a lot of prices have gone up by more than a few pences. Of course there are still the 'roll-back' specials. But many items seemed to have increased by quite a high percentage. I am wondering whether the s/markets are trying to get the extra cash in before the disastrous VAT increase to 22percent
causes another meltdown in the economy. Or maybe it is just the dollar against the pound rate or the oil in the Gulf of Mexico.

alwaysonthego_2

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Money_Grabber13579

No increase in VAT as of yet, that may come in the budget on the 22nd June. What you may be seeing is the price matching scam as exposed by BBC Watchdog, where supermarkets match their prices to other supermarkets, even if that means they go up. (And then they brag about how they've price matched!)

mjm3346

Vat going back to 17.5% is an inflationary factor which will be there until the end of this year. Popping it up to 20% from 1st January 2011 will just maintain the pressure, increasing it before then will add too much to the inflation rate, if it was increased after that it would dip then rise, so increase in Jan 2011 then the same for Jan 2012, 2013 etc.

Ballymackeonan

But most foods are VAT-free, so that shouldn't affect prices. It's got more to do with the fall in value of the pound - the effects are now coming through the system as a lot of imported ingredients are costing more.

Weirdlittleman

Ultimately the VAT decrease and increase had little effect on shelf prices. I would expect the same when(if) it goes up again.

John_Pierpoint

The supermarket till roll has something like an asterisk marking those items where the government has skimmed off 17.5%.
Some foods like ice cream crisps and choccy biscuits (not jaffa cakes) already carry VAT.

Children's clothes and "unhealthy" foods next ?
(Anything over 10% sugar? - that would put the price of jam and honey and some "natural" drinks a bit. 20% fat -woops cream and sausages; be enough to make you vegetarian ) but watch the subsidised land owners squirm.

It is also all about CO2/CH4 you know?

Ballymackeonan

Fruit juices for some reason have VAT charged on them - I can't see the reasoning behind that!

Another factor in the price increases could be transport costs - they've been going up, after all!

ahinds

If the vat rate is increased in the budget on 22nd june does anyone know when it will come into effect as i have a new car due for delivery in early july
thanks

Lifeisbutadream

ahinds wrote: »

If the vat rate is increased in the budget on 22nd june does anyone know when it will come into effect as i have a new car due for delivery in early july
thanks

Nobody can possibly know anything until the budget - anything you hear from now until then is just speculation.

ahinds

if vat goes up in the budget on 22nd june when will it come into effect i have a new car due for delivery early july should i pay for it before the budget
Thanks