Finance Act 2008

The Finance Act 2008 received Royal Assent on 21 July 2008.

As far as complicated legislation goes, this Act takes some beating. Over 400 pages, packed with amendments, repeals, etc. Normally, such an Act would have a Schedule at the end, setting out all the legislation repealed by that Act. This time, the draftsmen did not even bother. So, for the first time that I can recall, the Finance Act does not include a Repeals Schedule. It is therefore impossible to tell, at a glance, what legislation has been repealed by the Act. Frankly astonishing. Even in view of its well-deserved reputation for sloppy and incompetent drafting, this Government has somehow managed to surpass itself.