Plans for a new surcharge on homes valued over £2 million have prompted warnings from Kevin Hollinrake, Conservative Party Chairman, who described the policy as a “burglars’ charter.”
He said the measure would put the addresses of high-value homes in the public domain and could make them targets for criminals.
We look at how the mansion tax could make homes more susceptible to burglars and how it is predicted house prices and valuations will be handled and published once the Mansion Tax comes in.
How the Mansion Tax will work
The High Value Council Tax Surcharge, or Mansion Tax, will apply to residential properties in England with a 2026 valuation above £2 million.
Properties within this threshold will be assigned to new surcharge bands, with annual charges ranging from £2,500 for lower-tier homes to £7,500 for the highest-tier properties.
The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) will carry out revaluations of higher-value properties to determine which homes fall into these bands. The revaluations will focus on properties in council tax bands F, G, and H. Once the valuations are complete, local authorities will apply the surcharge alongside standard council tax collection processes.
Kevin Hollinrake’s security concerns
Kevin Hollinrake described the high-value surcharge as a “burglars’ charter,” saying it would put the addresses of homes above £2 million in the public domain and could make them targets for criminals. He said:
“The addresses of all homes above the £2 million threshold would be in the public domain. It effectively advertises the most valuable homes to professional thieves and invites them to double down on the most profitable properties.”
He also warned that in rural and isolated areas, properties would be easier to identify and could be singled out by offenders.
He said: “In rural and more isolated areas, however, homes are easier to identify and could be singled out by criminals. Doing criminals’ homework for them.”
With over 300,000 homes expected to be impacted by the Mansion Tax this could leave a plethora of homeowners at risk from burglars if Hollinrake's prediction is correct.
Treasury and Labour response
A Treasury spokesperson said council tax bands have been publicly available for more than 30 years and defended the surcharge as a fairness measure.
They added: “Our reforms to property taxes will ensure a £10m Westminster mansion doesn’t pay less than a typical family home in England.”
Labour has supported the surcharge as part of broader council tax reform, including updating valuations that have not changed since 1991.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves confirmed the high-value surcharge will affect fewer than 1% of properties in England, ensuring wealthier households contribute more relative to their property value.
