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“The probable level of overpayment of the new Tax Credits as a result of claimant error and fraud has led me to qualify my audit opinion on the Inland Revenue Trust Statement for a second year.

“It is important that the Inland Revenue tests the claims for new Tax Credits, as planned; and that it quantifies the financial implications of claimant error and fraud as soon as possible. The Department expects a result in respect of 2003-04 by July 2005, in time for the 2004-05 accounts.

“The successful introduction of Stamp Duty Land Tax, has reduced the opportunities for tax avoidance. Some issues remain and the Department should continue to review the tax revenues still at risk, even though these new arrangements have been introduced, and identify new ways of countering avoidance of Stamp Duty.”

“Much tax is collected quickly but at any one time there are billions of pounds outstanding, some of it long overdue. Faster recovery and preventing the build up of debt could bring in money which could be used to improve public services. My report identifies further opportunities for the Inland Revenue to improve how they collect debts.”

Sir John Bourn, the head of the National Audit Office, today reported on the results of his examination of the Government’s estimates of the number of people who may be affected by the proposed introduction of a lifetime allowance for the amount of tax-privileged saving in a pension scheme. The proposed allowance of £1.4 million … Read more

“Each year the public coffers are cheated of billions of pounds as a result of VAT lost through fraud and error. This is money which could be used to improve public services. Customs are working hard to reduce these losses, through new measures to improve compliance by traders and to detect and stop fraud. They have achieved some progress, for example on VAT missing trader fraud, but success will ultimately turn upon whether they can secure a sustained reduction in the level of losses.”

“The Inland Revenue continue to face challenges in maintaining individuals’ National Insurance contribution records, upon which large amounts of the public’s benefit entitlement depend. The quality of the contributions information received from employers remains a particular and enduring difficulty that various measures are addressing.”

“I am pleased to note the innovative changes made by Customs to better manage their relations with key stakeholders. The developments to date reveal a number of areas of good practice, for instance, closer co-operation with and understanding of traders, and the provision of dedicated points of contact for large businesses. The key test, though, remains the extent to which these measures will improve revenue yields.

“The development of a longer term strategy to manage the risks of alcohol fraud is also to be welcomed, although Customs will need to ensure effective cross-departmental communication if it is to be successfully implemented.”

“The significant level of overpayment of Working Families’ and Disabled Person’s Tax Credit – potentially some 10 to 14 percent – is cause for serious concern and I have qualified my audit opinion.

“The level of problems caused to tax credit claimants and employers as the new tax credit systems went live in April 2003 demonstrated that there were undetected gaps in the design of the testing regime for the systems.

“The Inland Revenue must pay particular attention to ensuring that recovery from the problems with new tax credits does not undermine the Department’s reputation for integrity and accuracy when dealing with taxpayers’ affairs. This reputation is essential to the effective assessment and collection of tax.”

“The Inherited SERPS problem was a major failure of administration which caused anxiety and distress for many people. I welcome the Department’s positive response to the recommendations made by the National Audit Office and the Committee of Public Accounts and the action which the Department have taken so far to reduce the likelihood of such a mistake being made again.

“However, more still needs to be done. It is crucial that the momentum generated over the past two years is maintained if the Department’s customers are to be confident that the information and advice they receive is accurate, timely and delivered in the most appropriate manner.”

“It is important that the Inland Revenue have a clear view of the risks and scale of external fraud and the resources and approaches they are going to use to tackle them, for even a small percentage loss to fraud could amount to billions of pounds.

“The use of offshore accounts and structures to commit tax fraud is a particular concern. While acknowledging the challenges faced by the Revenue in tackling fraud, and the many useful initiatives and techniques they are developing and implementing to tackle the problem, my report identifies good practices and opportunities for reducing fraud further.”

” Customs’ approach to the collection of revenue has shifted to focus on those traders presenting the greatest risk of non-compliance. In 2001-2002 they were able to identify £2.5 billion net underpayments, some 5 per cent more than in the previous year. But I was concerned to find that in the same year the amount of tax owing to Customs increased markedly. Customs’ latest debt figures show some signs of improvement, but they have a long way to go.

” It will be of concern to everyone that there have been serious weaknesses in Customs’ systems for holding and disposing of seized goods. Customs are implementing a range of measures to address these weaknesses but they could have been quicker to deal with serious underlying problems.”