Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps her Department is taking to help prevent VAT fraud by (a) misrepresentation and (b) impersonation.

Tax fraud undermines our economy, hurts legitimate businesses and robs our vital public services of much-needed funds. The Government is committed to tackling tax non-compliance through technology, operational interventions and policy change.

HMRC deploys advanced analytics and risk profiling to identify businesses that misrepresent their activities, turnover, or goods classification to gain VAT advantages, which are subject to targeted compliance interventions. The number of HMRC compliance officers will grow by an additional 5,500 by 2029/30 from July 2024 levels.

HMRC combines identity verification and registration checks using a range of risk indicators to prevent and detect impersonation. HMRC also uses a wide range of civil and criminal powers to tackle the criminal groups behind VAT fraud. The Government is investing to ensure HMRC can continue to improve resilience of its systems and improve the way customers engage securely with HMRC.