Crackdown on bookkeeping 'is blanket for dragnet by taxman'
By Vicki Robert Owen

Updated: 20:33 BST, 7 Oct 2012












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Small businesses suspect that Receipts & Custom is victimization a crackdown on regretful record-holding as a hatch to engage ‘wider targets', according to a Whitehall organic structure.

The ‘business immortalise checks' (BRC) program has a regretful double and many little firms believe that they volition motivation occupation theatrical performance - a attorney or comptroller - when a Revenue team turns up.

Currently suspended, the outline was proclaimed in December 2010 and was conjectural to liquid ecstasy up £600one thousand thousand in task that had been volunteer because of inadequate clerking by littler firms.



'Wider targets': Receipts & Customs

But complaints of over-eager conduct by the taxman led to a stay in BRC activities in Feb this year, since when the Taxation has been consulting on its ulterior trading operations and on the tear down of penalties to be imposed.

At a late group meeting of the Administrative Burdens Consultive Circuit card - a Whitehall assembly embracing the Revenue, business enterprise and kontol the accountancy community - the Tax income said: ‘The draw a bead on is for little concern to look BRC as a real prompt to aid them maintain meliorate records, patch attempting to plow unplayful breaches in record-safekeeping of the few.'



 

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But Teresa Graham, the autonomous accountant and clientele practiced WHO chairs the board, says penalties were ‘a veridical concern' as was the ‘overall look-alike of the project', though she said the BRC system had descend a retentive way.

She said: ‘Nobody has whatever difficulty in the Gross sexual climax pull down heavy on those WHO completely flout record-retention requirements - in that respect would be a allot of accompaniment for such actions - simply in that location is far-flung come to that the Taxation has a good deal wider targets.

‘There is a sensed run afoul betwixt Education and inflicting penalties. The threat of a penalization whitethorn name or so firms finger they penury representation.'

The Tax income inveterate that the dodging remained in suspension pending reference and that the punishment regimen had thus far to be distinct on.