Tag: Treasury

The press release issued by HM Treasury on 8 September 2023.

Kenneth James Campbell, 52, from Glasgow, was banned from being a company director at The Court of Session in Edinburgh on 16 August 2023, after swindling £2.8 million from investors who believed they were investing in an oil and gas venture in Texas, USA.

Campbell was sole director of HGEC Capital Ltd, a company which claimed to invest in petroleum and natural gas extraction, from its incorporation in March 2018 until it went into liquidation in February 2020.

An Insolvency Service investigation was triggered after complaints from investors to the company’s administrators following HGEC Capital’s demise.

The court heard that Campbell had sought investment in the company from clients between June 2018 until it folded in February 2020.

But investigators discovered that HGEC had operated as a Ponzi-like scheme, with Campbell using new funds to make negligible interest payments to existing investors. Most of the money was sent to third parties, and hundreds of thousands of pounds was paid to Campbell himself, with only around £430,000 invested in the intended scheme.

Investigators also found that Campbell paid himself £194,000, and payments of £360,000 were paid to consultants in HGEC. The total loss to investors when the company folded was £2.8 million .

Investigators found no evidence of wrongdoing by anyone other than Campbell, who had been solely responsible for the company’s finances.

Rob Clarke, Chief Investigator of Insolvent Investigations North at the Insolvency Service, said:

Many of Kenneth Campbell’s victims are members of the public who lost their life savings due to his deceit.

Campbell dishonestly took money from people at a time when he knew no investment would be made, and the lengthy disqualification ordered by the court illustrates the seriousness of his actions.

This ban should act as a strong deterrent to others who consider doing similar, and assure the public that the Insolvency Service will take the strongest action where such fraudulent actions are concerned.

As Campbell is sequestrated – the Scottish equivalent of being bankrupt – recovery of the remaining money has not been possible.

His 14-year disqualification, which began on 7 September 2023, will prevent him from acting as a director and becoming involved in the promotion, formation or management of a company, without the permission of the court.

The press release issued by HM Treasury on 7 September 2023.

The charging hub is big enough to charge 180 cars simultaneously.

The press release issued by HM Treasury on 5 September 2023.

The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Jeremy Hunt, today (5 September 2023) announced that he will present the Autumn Statement 2023 to Parliament on 22 November.

The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) have been commissioned to prepare an economic and fiscal forecast to be presented to Parliament alongside his Autumn Statement.

The press release issued by HM Treasury on 30 August 2023.

Aleksander Staskiewicz overstated his company turnover in order to secure the taxpayer-backed funds.

Aleksander Staskiewicz, 35, from Southampton, was sentenced to eight months imprisonment at Southampton Crown Court on 17 August 2023, for offences contrary to the Fraud Act 2006 and the Companies Act 2006.

Staskiewicz applied for a £20,000 Bounce Back Loan in May 2020 when the country was in lockdown. However, his company Think Gas Ltd had already been in financial difficulty before the pandemic had struck, and he had considered closing it down.

Instead, he overstated his company’s turnover in his application for the government funding and withdrew £19,600 the day after the loan was deposited in the company account. The day after this, he applied to close down his company by having it struck off from the Companies House register.

The striking-off application to dissolve a company makes clear that creditors, such as a bank with an outstanding loan, should be notified within seven days of applying to close the business, and that failure to notify interested parties is a criminal offence. Staskiewicz did not inform his bank.

The company’s affairs were investigated by the Insolvency Service after counter-fraud systems flagged the likelihood that fraud had occurred.

Attempting to avoid a custodial sentence, Staskiewicz told the court that he hoped to repay the loan money back within 12 months. However, he had made no effort to repay the loan in the past three years.

Peter Fulham – Chief Investigator at the Insolvency Service, said:

Aleksander Staskiewicz thought he could abuse the rules to exploit a scheme, backed by taxpayers, specifically designed to help businesses get through the pandemic.

He now has a criminal conviction as a consequence of his actions. We will not hesitate to prosecute such cases.

Background

Aleksander Staskiewicz is of Southampton. His date of birth is July 1988.

Think Gas Ltd – Company No. 10638031

Staskiewicz pleaded guilty at Southampton Crown Court on 20 July 2023 to the following specific offences:

Fraud by misrepresentation contrary to sections 1 and 2 Fraud Act 2006 – eight months
Failure to notify creditor of a strike off application contrary to section 1006 Companies Act 2006] – eight months
To be served concurrently making overall sentence of eight months.

The press release issued by HM Treasury on 30 August 2023.

With the new school term starting, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is reminding families to open a Tax-Free Childcare account today to save up to £2,000 per child on their yearly childcare bills.

Families can use their Tax-Free Childcare account to pay for any approved childcare including holiday clubs, breakfast and after school clubs, child minders and nurseries.

The scheme provides working families, with children up to the age of 11, or 16 if their child has a disability, up to £2,000 a year per child or £4,000 a year if their child is disabled. For every £8 paid into a Tax-Free Childcare account, families automatically receive the government top up of £2. Families can save up to £500 every 3 months for each child or £1,000 if their child is disabled.

Myrtle Lloyd, HMRC’s Director General for Customer Services, said:

Starting back to school and arranging childcare for the term ahead can be costly for working families. Tax-Free Childcare offers financial help so families can save on the cost of childcare. Search Tax-Free Childcare on GOV.UK and sign up online today.

Opening a Tax-Free Childcare account online is straightforward and can be done in about 20 minutes. Money can be deposited at any time, 365 days a year, to be used straight away or left in the account and used whenever it is needed. Unused money in the account can be withdrawn at any time.

The press release issued by HM Treasury on 25 August 2023.

Three businessmen from southeast England each claimed the maximum £50k Bounce Back Loan and one dissolved his company to avoid repayment.

Ivan Hristov Fratev, 57 and Bradley Malone, 57, both from London, and Ryan William Moir, 34, from East Sussex, have been banned from running businesses for a total of 26 years, after each separately claimed £50,000 for their companies in breach of the loan scheme’s rules.

Fratev was also given a 2-year suspended sentence with 4 months’ electronically tagged curfew, at Snaresbrook Crown Court on 23 June 2023, in addition to a 6-year ban, for dissolving his business after taking out the loan. The judge also included 15 days rehabilitation activity requirement (RAR) as part of his suspended sentence.

Fratev was the sole director of Chingford-based BI&F Ltd, which traded as a construction, security and extermination business from premises in Alpha Road. In May 2020 he applied for the maximum £50,000 Bounce Back Loan, designed to help businesses keep afloat through the pandemic.

But within two weeks of the money arriving in the company bank account, Fratev applied to dissolve BI&F Ltd, without informing the bank that had loaned him the money. Failure to notify creditors of plans to strike off a company is a criminal offence.

He was caught through powers granted to the Insolvency Service in December 2021, which allow it to investigate directors of dissolved companies who are suspected of closing their business to avoid repaying Covid-19 support loans.

Peter Fulham, Chief Investigator of the Criminal Investigation Team at the Insolvency Service said:

Covid-19 financial support schemes were funded from the public purse to support genuine businesses during the pandemic. Directors who abused the scheme have exploited taxpayers.

This two-year suspended prison sentence, along with a curfew order and a 6-year disqualification, reflects the thoroughly dishonest conduct of Ivan Fratev and should serve as a warning to others who engaged in such behaviour.

“The Insolvency Service will act to remove directors who abused Bounce Back Loans from the business arena.”

In another case in London, Bradley Malone, the sole director of ONENETPRINT Ltd, a print business trading from Palmers Road in East London, applied for the maximum £50,000 Bounce Back Loan in June 2020, stating that his company’s previous year’s turnover was £200,000.

The Bounce Back Loan scheme allowed a business to borrow between £2,000 and up to 25% of the company turnover in calendar year 2019, with a maximum loan of £50,000.

The company went into liquidation in February 2022 owing the full amount of the loan, which triggered an investigation by the Insolvency Service.

Malone told investigators that, during the application process, he had merely clicked ‘next’ on his phone, and the money arrived within the hour. But investigators discovered that Malone had in fact overstated the company’s turnover for 2019 in the application, to claim the maximum £50,000 loan.

They found that the company’s actual turnover for that year had been around £90,200, meaning ONENETPRINT Ltd had received around £27,400 more than it was entitled to, under the rules of the scheme.

In a third case, Ryan Moir, sole director of East Sussex-based Croxton Group Ltd, which traded as a builder from Green Street industrial estate in Eastbourne, applied for the maximum £50,000 Bounce Back Loan on behalf of his company in May 2020. He stated on the application that Croxton Group Ltd’s turnover the previous year had been £250,000.

When the company went into liquidation in May 2022, it owed around £184,500, including more than £49,400 towards the Bounce Back Loan. An investigation by the Insolvency Service showed that the company’s 2019 turnover had in fact been less than £21,000, meaning that Croxton Group Ltd had received almost 10 times more than it had been entitled to under the rules of the scheme.

The company’s liquidators are taking action to recover the money.

Malone and Moir were both banned from being company directors for 10 years, after the Secretary of State for Business and Trade accepted disqualification undertakings from each director. Malone’s ban began on 17 July 2023, and Moir’s began on 19 July 2023. Fratev’s court-ordered 6-year disqualification started on 23 June 2023.

The bans prevent the former directors from becoming involved in the promotion, formation or management of a company, without the permission of the court. In addition to his ban and two-year suspended sentence, Fratev is also subject to 4 months’ electronically monitored curfew between 7pm and 7am, and was ordered to pay court costs of £500.

Background

• Ivan Hristov Fratev is of London. His date of birth is September 1965.
• BI&F UK Limited (Company number 12150010) Incorporated in August 2019.
• Ryan William Moir is of Heathfield. His date of birth is May 1989.
• Croxton Group Ltd (Company number 10775998) Incorporated in May 2017.
• Bradley Malone is of London. His date of birth is March 1966.
• ONENETPRINT Ltd (Company number 07987005) Incorporated in March 2012.
• Bounce Back Loans were a government scheme in which active businesses impacted by the pandemic could take out interest-free, taxpayer-backed loans of up to £50,000. Loans were for the economic support of the business.

The press release issued by HM Treasury on 22 August 2023.

Child Benefit automatically stops when children reach 16 but it can be claimed for children continuing their education or training.

Parents have one week after GCSE results day to tell HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) that their 16-year-old is continuing their education or training, to continue receiving Child Benefit.

Teenagers will find out their GCSE results this week and many will be considering their future and whether to stay on in education. Child Benefit payments stop on 31 August after a child turns 16, but parents can extend their claim if their child is continuing in approved education or training.

It is easy for parents to update their Child Benefit record. They can use the online service on GOV.UK or the HMRC app to tell HMRC about their child’s plans.

HMRC recently wrote to parents about extending their Child Benefit claim. The letter included a QR code which, when scanned, directs them to GOV.UK to update their claim online. Any changes will be applied to their Child Benefit claim immediately.

Child Benefit will continue to be paid for children who are studying full time which can include:

• A levels or similar
• International Baccalaureate
• home education – if it started before their child turned 16 or after 16 if they have special needs
• T levels
• NVQs, up to level 3
• traineeships in England

Child Benefit will also continue for children studying on one of these unpaid approved training courses:

• in Wales: Foundation Apprenticeships, Traineeships or the Jobs Growth Wales+ scheme
• in Northern Ireland: PEACE IV Children and Young People 2.1, Training for Success or Skills for Life and Work

Myrtle Lloyd, HMRC’s Director General for Customer Services, said:

Child Benefit can provide financial support to families, so make sure you don’t miss out if your teenager is still eligible. You can quickly and easily extend your claim online or via the HMRC app, just search ‘Child Benefit when your child turns 16’ on GOV.UK.

Parents will need a Government Gateway user ID and password to use HMRC’s online services. They will need their National Insurance number or postcode and 2 forms of ID to register on GOV.UK.

The government is offering help for households. Check GOV.UK to find out about cost of living support, including help with childcare costs.

Further information

More information on Child Benefit for 16-19 year olds

Parents cannot claim Child Benefit if their child is taking a course that is part of a job contract.

Parents can view and manage their claim quickly and easily online or on the HMRC app. This includes viewing payment information and proof of their claim, adding additional children and updating their details – all without needing to call HMRC.

The press release issued by HM Treasury on 18 August 2023.

The vast majority of people and businesses are set to be no further than three miles away from withdrawing cash under a new framework set out by the Treasury.

• government protects cash access services, free of charges, across the UK
• new minimum expectation for cash-users set out by City Minister
• vulnerable cash users protected by Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)

The vast majority of people and businesses are set to be no further than three miles away from withdrawing cash under a new framework set out by the Treasury.

A government statement published today (18 August 2023) set the minimum expectations on banks to protect services for people and businesses wanting to withdraw or deposit cash.

They can expect to withdraw cash without any fees – something that has been set out in law.

As part of this move, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has been provided new powers by the government to protect the provision of cash access services. This includes protecting cash access without any fees for those who hold personal current accounts.

Building on laws granted through the government’s Financial Services and Markets Act 2023, the FCA will use these newfound powers to make sure banks and building societies are keeping up to these standards – and have the power to fine them if they do not.

While the country is moving further away from using coins and notes with the number of online payments rising from 45% to 85% in the past ten years, cash can still be an integral part of many businesses and people’s lives.

Economic Secretary to the Treasury, Andrew Griffith, said:

Whilst the growing choice and convenience of digital payments is great, cash has an important and continuing role to play. That’s why we are taking action to protect access to cash in law and laying out that this means fee-free withdrawals and the availability of cash facilities within a reasonable distance.

People shouldn’t have to trek for hours to withdraw a tenner to put in someone’s birthday card – nor should businesses have to travel large distances to deposit cash takings.

These are measures which benefit everyone who uses cash but particularly those living in rural areas, the elderly and those with disabilities.

As it stands, the vast majority of people living in urban areas can access cash deposit and withdrawal services within one mile; with rural-dwellers around three miles away. Today’s policy statement makes clear that the FCA should use its powers to maintain this level of coverage, while recognising that needs may differ by location and change over time.

It also makes clear that – if a service is withdrawn and a replacement service is needed – this should be put in place before the closure takes place.

The FCA is also required to ‘have regard’ to local deficiencies in cash access. The policy statement sets out that the regulator should consider factors such as the opening hours and distance to cash access services, as well as the need for in-person assistance.

Laws introduced in the Financial Services Act 2021 have delivered cashback in over 2,500 shops across the UK – without any need to buy something in store – through the LINK network.

The press release issued by HM Treasury on 15 August 2023.

Colin Hulme, 44, from Stoke-on-Trent, was sentenced to 12 months imprisonment, suspended for 24 months, at Stoke Crown Court on 4 August 2023, after failing to keep accounting records for his business. He will also have to undertake 150 hours of unpaid work in addition to his sentence, and pay £5,000 towards prosecution costs.

Hulme was sole director of KDM & Sons Ltd, which bought and sold PlayStations, mobile phones and computer hard drives, from April 2016 until the company went into liquidation in 2017.

However, following the company’s closure, Hulme failed to deliver up sufficient company records to either the liquidator or the Insolvency Service to establish why the business had failed, or even when it had ceased trading.

Hulme had previously claimed that he had handed over three boxes of books and records to the liquidator’s offices in Sutton Coldfield, yet there was no record of this delivery.

Julie Barnes, Chief Investigator at the Insolvency Service, said:

Any business owner should ensure they have proper financial record keeping in place, but for directors of limited companies this is a specific legal requirement.

There are no excuses and as Colin Hulme has discovered, a failure to do so can and will result in a criminal conviction.

Without the necessary invoices or cash book, neither the liquidator nor the Insolvency Service investigators were able to determine whether deposits of approximately £2,218,300 into the company’s bank account between June 2016 and June 2017 were from genuine sales of electronic equipment, nor whether outgoings of around £2,236,800 from the same account were legitimate business expenditure.

At the end of November 2016, the company owed £2,776,209 in tax. This amount was never paid, and the court heard that investigators were not able to establish whether the tax assessment should in fact have been higher. Nor could the accuracy of the company’s Statement of Affairs, submitted to Companies House, be verified, so investigators were unable to determine whether the company had any recoverable assets to pay back creditors.

Hulme had earlier accepted a disqualification undertaking from the Secretary of State in August 2019, but was later charged with a breach of the Companies Act 2006 due to the criminal nature of his misconduct. He was sentenced by Recorder Macadam.

Background

• Colin Hulme is of Stoke-on-Trent. His date of birth is October 1979.
• KDM & Sons Limited (company number 08029284)
• Sentenced for breach of duty (under s386 Companies Act 2006) to keep accounting records contrary to section 387(1) of the Companies Act 2006

The press release issued by HM Treasury on 15 August 2023.

Taxpayers who are unsure if they need to submit a Self Assessment tax return can use HMRC’s online tool to help them work out what they need to do.

If someone has had a change in circumstances, then they might need to complete their first ever Self Assessment tax return for the 2022 to 2023 tax year, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is reminding people.

Taxpayers can use the quick and easy free online checking tool on GOV.UK and register with HMRC by 5 October if they do need to self-assess. Taxpayers can also use it if they think they may not need to complete one this year too.

Myrtle Lloyd, HMRC’s Director General for Customer Services, said:

It is important that taxpayers check if they need to complete a Self Assessment tax return so they can pay the right amount of tax owed and avoid penalties for not filing a return. It is quick and easy to check by using the interactive tool on GOV.UK – there is no need to ring us.

Taxpayers may need to complete a tax return if they:

• are newly self-employed and have earned more than £1,000
• have multiple sources of income
• have received any untaxed income, for example earning money for creating online content
• earn more than £100,000 a year
• earn income from property that they own and rent out
• are a new partner in a business partnership
• are claiming Child Benefit and they or their partner have an income above £50,000
• receive interest from banks and building societies (more than £10,000)
• receive dividends in excess of £10,000
• need to pay Capital Gains Tax
• are self-employed and earn less than £1,000 but wish to pay Class 2 NICs voluntarily to protect their entitlement to State Pension and certain benefits

The online checking tool can also be used by those who may no longer need to do Self Assessment, including if they:

• gave up work or retired
• are no longer self-employed
• earn below the minimum income thresholds

If taxpayers no longer think they need to complete a Self Assessment tax return for the 2022 to 2023 tax year, they should tell HMRC before the deadline on 31 January 2024 to avoid any penalties.

Taxpayers can register for Self Assessment on GOV.UK. Once registered, they will receive their Unique Taxpayer Reference, which they will need when completing their tax return.

HMRC has wide range of resources to help taxpayers file a tax return including a series of video tutorials on YouTube and a new step by step guide. for anyone that is filing for the first time.

Taxpayers need to be aware of the risk of falling victim to scams and should never share their HMRC login details with anyone, including a tax agent, if they have one. HMRC scams advice is available on GOV.UK.