Contaminated Land Case

Land Remediation Expenditure Relief

For a case on land remediation expenditure relief, see the decision of the Tax & Chancery Chamber of the Upper Tribunal in Northern Gas Networks Ltd. v. Revenue & Customs Commissioners [2021] UKUT 157 (TCC). Relief had been refused to a company which had in 2005 acquired an extensive network of gas pipes, which was subject to a pre-existing requirement to replace the corroding iron pipes with plastic, on safety grounds.  The UT rejected the appeal against refusal of relief. It found that the "contaminated state" was due to the activity of the owner and its predecessors in pumping gas through the pipes.  The fact that the gas had not caused the corrosion, or that the current owner or its predecessor had not laid the iron pipes did not affect that conclusion.  Further, the expenditure on the pipes as chattels did not on the facts, have the requisite connection with the land.  The expenditure was to provide a new network of safe, durable pipes, not on land in a contaminated state.

 

Text reference  22-22