The Finance Bill 2016 recently had its second reading in the House of Commons. At this point, the Bill was therefore frozen given the purdah in place before the EU referendum. Also as a result of the purdah the expected consultations on Making Tax Digital will not be launched until post-referendum. The Northern Ireland Tax Committee will be engaging directly with members on these important consultations.

Finance Bill 2016 will next be considered at Committee Stage. Parts of the Bill will be considered by a Committee of the whole House, and the remainder in a Public Bill Committee. The House of Commons agreed a carry-over motion for this Bill on 11 April 2016. This means that consideration of the Bill will resume in the 2016–17 session after the referendum. This means that Royal Assent may be later than the normal July date.

The Bill was given a formal First and Second Reading (no debate) in May to reintroduce it in the 2016–17 session of Parliament. The Bill will be restarted at the point it reached in the last session.