Andrew Stephenson – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Andrew Stephenson on 2016-01-06.

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps his Department is taking to tackle the sale of illegally-produced alcohol in shops.

Damian Hinds

The Government is committed to tackling alcohol fraud. Alcohol producers have to be licensed or gain approval by HMRC to operate. Illegal production is off-record and often involves the counterfeiting of established alcohol brands; chiefly spirits.

Detections of illegally produced alcohol in shops are low. However, because of the potentially serious health consequences of consumption, vigilance by enforcement agencies and the public is crucial.

HMRC responds robustly to all discoveries of illegal production of alcohol and works collaboratively with other enforcement agencies such as Local Authority Trading Standards and the Police, to tackle the sale of counterfeit alcohol. As well as exchanging intelligence, HMRC and Trading Standards Officers take part in joint exercises targeting retailers in specific regions to detect illegal products. Agencies working together can bring a broader range of sanctions and penalties against those who chose to flout the laws.

Sales of alcohol that are suspected to be illegally produced, counterfeit or untaxed can be reported to HMRC by using hotline number 0800 595 000, which is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.