HM Customs and Excise (now part of HM Revenue and Customs) collected £162 billion of gross receipts in 2003-04 in value added tax (VAT) and excise and customs duties from over 1.8 million business traders. The Committee's report examines the NAO standard report on the work of the Department during 2003-04 (contained within the 95th report of the Commissioners of Her Majestys Customs and Excise for 2003-04, published as HCP 119, session 2004-05, ISBN 0102931593 in December 2004). It makes a number of recommendations focusing on work related to the two key revenue streams of VAT (which generates £63.6 billion net) and hydrocarbon oils, mainly on petron and diesel fuel (which provides £12.7 billion and £9.8 billion respectively).

HM Customs and Excise 2004-05 Accounts : Resource accounts - trust statement - standard report (for the year ended 31 March 2005)

In 2004-05 HM Revenue and Customs paid £15.8 billion of Tax Credits. The Department recalculates each award annually and has identified that for 2003-04 it overpaid some £2.2 billion to 1.9 million families. It believes that 2004-05 will see a similar level of overpayment. This is partly due to the nature of the scheme where awards are provisionally based on previous income whilst the final award is based on actual income. However the level of overpayment has been higher than was initial estimated and repayments have caused distress to some families. This report looks at measures being taken to reduce overpayments; claimant error and fraud; and the settlement with EDS over problems with the computer system. The Committee attaches great importance to this subject and wish to return to it in the future.

HM Customs and Excise is the government department responsible for collecting indirect taxes and enforcing regulations regarding the movement of goods across the UK national and the EU common frontier. This report provides an update on the activities of the Department, reviews its achievements against public service agreement targets and details its future public spending plans.

Following on from the National Audit Office's report on the work of HM Customs and Excise (included in the HM Customs and Excise 2002-03 annual report (HCP 52, session 2003-04, ISBN 0102926751)) the Committee's report focuses on two key issues: their approach to combating the problem of alcohol fraud, and their management of revenue from large traders. Findings include: there is significant uncertainty about any estimates of spirits fraud based upon current methodologies and data sources; better use needs to be made of existing information from alcohol producers to track suspected illicit products; and poor communication within the Department has undermined anti-fraud operations and prosecutions.