§ Mr. BercowTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what improvements in risk targeting he has initiated in 2001–02 in HM Customs and Excise in order more effectively to tackle serious non-compliance in the payment of indirect taxes. [47668]
§ Mr. BoatengAs part of Customs' recent restructuring, greater emphasis is being placed on risk assessment, both at national and regional levels. During 2001–02 National Risk Managers have been appointed for VAT, Excise and International trade, supported by Risk Managers in each of the seven Customs geographical regions.
Special teams have also been established to tackle risks in relation to VAT Missing Trader Intra-Community fraud and VAT Avoidance, while 20 joint teams have been set up alongside the Inland Revenue and the Department for Work and Pensions specifically to identify and tackle businesses operating in the informal economy.
Following the independent investigation conducted by John Rogues into excise diversion fraud, regional and national teams have also been set up to target risk in relation to excise warehouses, complementing the risk-based controls applied to goods entering the country under duty suspense.