Rachel Reeves has said there is a £22bn "black hole" in the public finances, and that she'll have to raise tax to fill it. Labour are heavily constrained by their pre-election promises, and that makes raising £22bn a challenging endeavour. But certainly not impossible.
And something unrelated:
I was going to publish another expose into R&D tax relief fraud today. However yesterday, HMRC made eleven arrests, and unfortunately the risk of prejudicing a trial (and contempt of court rules) mean that I won’t be able to report anything further on those affected for some time. Previous articles by us and others will remain available (and that includes a piece in today’s Private Eye, which was printed prior to the arrests).
When the criminal process is over, I will have plenty to say, both about the alleged fraudsters, and about the lawyers who facilitated them.
I’ve copied HMRC’s statement below.
If you have any comments on this, or anything else, do please drop me a line. You can just reply to this email - it goes straight to my inbox.
Dan
HMRC STATEMENT 24 SEPTEMBER 2024
Arrests made as HMRC warns of tax agent fraud threat
Eleven people, including tax agents, have been arrested on suspicion of R&D tax relief fraud.
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) officers executed warrants at business addresses across the country today (September 24). A number of other people have been invited to attend an interview under caution.
The arrests are part of coordinated action to tackle suspected abuse of the R&D tax relief system, which is there to support companies investing in innovative science and technology projects.
Jonathan Smith, HMRC’s Director responsible for Agent Compliance, said:
“These arrests are just one small part of the comprehensive and wide-ranging action we’re taking to tackle suspected R&D fraud.
“We’re committed to supporting honest businesses, and their agents, to get the tax reliefs they’re entitled to. We urge anyone with information about any type of tax fraud to report it to HMRC online.”
Any company or individual that has made a claim which they believe may be inaccurate should contact HMRC to correct their tax return and repay the tax credits incorrectly received.
If you have been approached by someone you believe is a dishonest tax agent, you can report it to HMRC.
HMRC will not be commenting further.
Nice on Dan.
Eleven arrests huh.
Seems HMRC are baring their teeth at long last.
Couldn't happen to a nicer bunch of crooks, I hope they all go down for a very long time, including the bent briefs who helped them.
All this and a solution for our struggling Chancellor too.
What's not to like about Tax Policy Associates?