HMRC Taken to Task for the Slowed Pace in Handling the Tax Avoiders

The HM Revenue & Customs has been slammed by MPs for it’s inappropriately slowness performance in dealing with measures of tax avoidance. It has also failed to deal with those companies that are taking advantage of international tax structures in minimizing liabilities of UK taxes.

Margaret Hodge who is the chair of the influential public accounts committee in a strong report said that the actions of HMRC were very low thereby the tax revenues were being put at risk. Moreover, there was not much that was going to be done in tackling those corporations that make the most of structures of international tax in reducing the tax liabilities of the UK.

Margaret Hodge roughed up the taxman during the period of time that he took in confronting the disreputable scheme of tax avoidance. He said that out of the £400m tax that was at stake, up to £10m had been jeopardized from the 2,000 scheme users. HMRC had failed to begin inquiries in personal tax returns within a deadline of one year.

The slowed progress in taking action on the Falcini list by HMRC was also criticized. This process put on the spot light close to 3,600 persons who were avoiding taxes by use of the undisclosed Swiss bank accounts.

Additionally, the committee expressed its ‘amazement’ that a performance of £1.9bn measurement error was for three years undetected by the governance of HMRC and also the internal audit. The taxman raised his concern that in spite of such an ambitious error, its targets had been exceeded since the year 2010.

HMRC was urged to up their game by Hodge in tackling those companies that make use of structures of international tax in minimizing the tax liabilities at the UK. The latest changes in the tax regime of the UK like those of the foreign companies that are controlled have been confronted by the international bodies such as the European Commission and OECD as comprising tax practices that are harmful. Such alterations, constituting of the introduction of the relief of the patent box makes it very easy for the international companies in tax avoidance in jurisdictions where profits are made.