Ms Sarah Perret:

I will comment on what the Deputy said about the increases in property values. One of the advantages of a property tax is that it is capitalised in house prices, so, in theory, it could help to stabilise house price growth. Indeed, there are OECD studies which indicate it does that. I agree that we are in a situation where house prices have been growing tremendously, and so the question of regular value updates is tricky. Some countries do that not on a yearly basis but over a certain number of years, which might help with this issue.

On distinguishing between somebody's home and other properties, it is usually the case that owner-occupied housing in OECD countries tends to be tax favoured. That is probably a common approach across countries. Fewer tax reliefs are available for secondary properties. Some countries have progressive rates in respect of secondary properties. That is a common approach among OECD countries.