Restaurant owners in Brighton and Hove are facing a tax clampdown, Revenue and Customs said today (Tuesday 18 September).
Revenue and Customs chiefs said that they had set up a task force to tackle tax dodgers in the trade across Sussex, the Solent and the wider South East.
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They expect to focus on about 300 restaurants and to go through their books thoroughly and, as a result, to recover more than £2.5 million.
Task forces are “specialist teams that undertake intensive bursts of activity in specific high-risk trade sectors and locations”, Revenue and Customs said.
David Gauke, the Exchequer Secretary, said: “We have made it clear that we will not tolerate tax evasion and we are determined to crack down on the minority who choose to break the rules.
“Everyone needs to pay the taxes they owe in full. It is not fair that at a time when most hard-working people are paying the right tax, others are trying to get out of paying what they should.”
Revenue and Customs director-general enforcement and compliance Mike Eland said: “This task force brings together specialists from across HMRC (HM Revenue and Customs) to find people who are not paying what they should.
“If you have paid all your taxes you have nothing to worry about. But for those deliberately evading tax, be warned that HMRC is coming after you.
“This is not an empty threat. HMRC can and will track you down if you choose to break the rules.
“We are on target to collect more than £50 million as a result of taskforces launched in 2011-12.”
Revenue and Customs has set up 30 task forces since May last year
The task forces are a result of the government’s £917 million spending review investment to tackle tax evasion, avoidance and fraud from 2011-12, which aims to raise an extra £7 billion a year by 2014-15.
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