Philip Dunne expressed concern at new laws pushed through Parliament that give council tax inspectors the right to enter homes and fine householders.Philip Dunne, MP for Ludlow expressed concern at new laws pushed through Parliament that give council tax inspectors the right to enter homes and fine householders. Residents face fines of £1,000 a time, and then £200 every day after that, if they do not let the inspectors into their home or if they fail to 'assist' town hall inspectors when inside. These new laws are being piloted in Northern Ireland, with England next in line.

• New house price tax: A controversial new system of local government taxation is being quietly introduced in Northern Ireland as a testing ground for England's looming council tax revaluation. Unlike Council Tax, householders face a 'House Price Tax' - a set percentage of the value of their home each year. This tax will hit Northern Ireland in April, with Gordon Brown's review of town hall finances actively looking at the same system for England.
• Big Brother databases tax every home improvement: Under this new House Price Tax, features like gardens, patios, conservatories, double glazing, scenic views, number of bedrooms and number of parking spaces, increase the size of the local tax bill. The information is fed into a 'Computer Assisted Mass Appraisal' database. The same 'Big Brother' technology has been bought for both England and Northern Ireland.
• New powers of entry: This new tax system requires detailed information about every home. The Government has now pushed new laws through Parliament through an obscure Committee to give the town hall tax inspectors powers in Northern Ireland to barge into local homes. Under 'Article 38' of the new law, householders will be forced to let state officials into their homes. In a worrying addition, residents who "fail to give reasonable assistance" or do not collaborate with the inspectors will be fined £1,000 and be recorded on local police and court records. If the householder continues to obstruct, hinder or fail to provide assistance, they can be fined £200 per day on top.

Mr Dunne said:

"I am very concerned that Northern Ireland is now being used as a testing ground for Gordon Brown's tax inspectors, from the levying of a new House Price Tax, to the use of invasive Big Brother computer databases, to new aggressive state powers to enter family homes.

"For all of Labour's talk of human rights, these new powers for council tax inspectors are the footprint of an oppressive and greedy government. Conservatives will resist these new authoritarian powers and will stand up for people's property, privacy and liberty."