§ Mr. A. BENNETTasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, in view of the proposals in the Finance Bill for the increase of penalties in respect of the fraudulent return of Income Tax statements, he can inform the House of the number of such attempts at fraud in each of the last six years and the number of cases in which prosecutions have been instituted?
§ Major BOYD-CARPENTERThe information desired by the hon. Member in the first part of his question has not been assembled, and could not be obtained without laborious and costly investigation, which I could not authorise. Apart from other considerations, no exact division could be made between cases in which there was an element of deliberate evasion and those of mere negligence or mistake. As regards the second part, the number of cases in each of the last six years, in which criminal proceedings have been instituted, is as follows:—
Year. Number of cases. 1917 … … … 6 1918 … … … 4 1919 … … … 3 1920 … … … 4 1921 … … … 4 1922 … … … 9