BAA calls on Chancellor to suspend Aggregates Levy

British Aggregates Association says Levy is now dead in the water and must be scrapped

FOLLOWING the EU General Court judgment which annulled state aid approval for the Aggregates Levy on 7 March 2012, the British Aggregates Association (BAA) has written to the Treasury and HM Revenue & Customs demanding that the Levy be suspended with immediate effect.

The BAA has been pointing out the problems of the Levy since its inception in 2002 and has called for it to be abandoned on many occasions. The Association contends that the Levy has not reduced the need for virgin aggregate, has not helped the environment and has not increased genuine recycling.

BAA director Robert Durward commented: ‘The Aggregates Levy is now dead in the water and must be scrapped to avoid further commercial damage and confusion. Quarry operators are now struggling to survive in light of the recession and a number have already closed down.’

He added: ‘As it enters its eleventh year, the BAA’s legal challenge has already set new records for longevity. I remain hopeful that Mr Osborne will call a halt to the whole sorry episode on Wednesday.

‘If he fails to suspend the Levy, aggregate pricing and credit control will become chaotic as more and more people wake up to the fact that the Levy no longer has state aid approval.’