§ Mr. JenkinsTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of(a) the number of businesses which failed in 1999 due to a tax demand from the Inland Revenue and (b) the cost of these failures to the Exchequer. [133885]
§ Dawn PrimaroloIn the financial year ended 31 March 2000 the Inland Revenue's Enforcement Office obtained Bankruptcy and Winding-up orders in 2,219
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Year Department Subject of Direction Category of Direction 1990 ECGD Sale of British Aerospace Hawk jets to Kenya Economy, efficiency and effectiveness 1991 MOD Chieftain Tank Replacement Economy, efficiency and effectiveness 1991 ODA Pergau Dam Economy, efficiency and effectiveness 1992 MOD HMS Endurance Replacement Economy, efficiency and effectiveness 1992 MOD Closure of depot at RNSD Copenacre Economy, efficiency and effectiveness 1992 MAFF Location of Divisional Offices Economy, efficiency and effectiveness 1992 MOD Image Intensifiers Economy, efficiency and effectiveness 1993 ECGD Guarantees for Export and Investments in Russia Economy, efficiency and effectiveness 1995 MOD Medium Support Helicopters Economy, efficiency and effectiveness 1995 ECGD ECGD Support to Jordan Economy, efficiency and effectiveness 1995 DETR Re-Examination of the Wreck of the Derbyshire Economy, efficiency and effectiveness 1995 DETR—OPRAF Decision on Profit Participation in the passenger rail franchising programme Economy, efficiency and effectiveness 1995 DETR—OPRAF Decision on Revenue Risk sharing in the passenger rail franchising programme Economy, efficiency and effectiveness 1997 DETR Channel Tunnel Rail Link and exceptional hardship Greenwich Peninsula and to provide a site for the Millennium Exhibition Economy, efficiency and effectiveness 1998 DSS Benefits Agency/Post Office Counters Ltd. (BA/POCL Automation Ltd. Economy, efficiency and effectiveness 1998 DSS Benefits Agency/Post Office Counters Ltd. BA/POCL Automation Ltd. Economy, efficiency and effectiveness 1998 Northern Ireland Court Service Concerns an individual's personnel records Propriety/regularity 1998 MOD Sale of Cadet Property in Moffat Propriety/regularity 1998 DSS Benefits Integrity Project Propriety/regularity cases. This represents around 5 per cent. of the total number of insolvencies in England and Wales in the same period.
Insolvency proceedings are taken only as a last resort by the Inland Revenue, after all other attempts to secure settlement or negotiate acceptable proposals for payment have failed. In considering such action they try to ensure a balance between the need to collect tax that is due, maintaining a level playing field for other businesses who pay on time, and a proper concern for the taxpayer to stay in business or earn enough to keep going.