§ 63. Mr. Arthur Lewisasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what are the general rules operated by the Inland Revenue regarding claims for, and colection of, arrears of Income Tax; and why in the cases of two widows in the constituency of West Ham, North, who owed nominal sums of£15 and£20 in arrears of tax for a short period of time, legal action for enforcement was threatened.
§ Mr. Harold LeverThe Revenue refrain from collecting tax on grounds of poverty if payment would cause serious hardship. In the first case mentioned by my hon. Friend, the Collector threatened enforcement action because he had not received all the information which he had asked for in order to consider the question of accepting payment by instalments.
My hon. Friend informed me recently that the second case has now been resolved.