Priti to Chancellor – scrap immoral VAT on life saving defibrillators

Witham MP Priti Patel recently met with representatives from the Scrap the Heart Restart Tax campaign in Parliament in support of the campaign to scrap VAT on defibrillators. 

Priti spoke with Jack Hurley whose life was saved by a defibrillator when he suffered cardiac arrest while playing football. Jack and the campaign are calling for the Chancellor to scrap the VAT on defibrillators so that more communities have access to this life saving equipment. This is an issue that Priti has raised with the Treasury previously on behalf of local organisations such as the Witham Bowls Club.

Witham has just 0.6 defibrillators per square mile – slashing the tax will help to increase affordability and save lives. Priti has therefore signed a joint letter with other MP’s from across the political divide, calling on the Chancellor to end VAT on defibrillators.

Priti said: “It was a real pleasure to meet Jack and the team from the Scrap the Heart Restart Tax campaign, this is a campaign I whole heartedly support. Jack’s story is why defibrillators are essential across local communities. With only 0.6 defibrillators per square mile in Witham, I believe that ending the tax will increase affordability for local communities and most importantly save more lives.

I hope that in his upcoming Autumn Statement the Chancellor moves to abolishing this immoral tax on this vitally important life saving equipment so that more communities in Witham and across the country have access to defibrillators.”

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