§ Mr. MandelsonTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps his Department has taken to examine the tax position of unincorporated bodies receiving funds from bank accounts in offshore tax havens; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. DorrellAn unincorporated body which is resident in this country is liable to United Kingdom tax on its424W worldwide income, on which it makes returns. The Inland Revenue subjects a proportion of total returns to detailed inquiry, which may involve the examination of foreign source income.
§ Mr. MandelsonTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimates he has made of the number of United Kingdom persons, individual and corporate, who have set up trusts and companies offshore since 1980; and if he will place all such estimates in the Library.
§ Mr. DorrellI regret that information on which to base such an estimate is not available.
§ Mr. MandelsonTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many cases which have been investigated by the Inland Revenue and are currently being investigated by the Serious Fraud Office and by the Metropolitan police and regional fraud squads, involve the use of offshore tax havens in the perpetration of the suspected fraud.
§ Mr. DorrellFigures are not available.