1. General
1.1. Measuring the Tax Gaps
HMRC has published the estimates of the tax gaps for 2009-10.
Overall the total tax gap is estimated to be £35 billion in
2009/10. This equates to around 8 per cent of the estimated total
tax liability for 2009/10.
The estimates show a decrease in the tax gap of £4 billion
from 2008/09 to 2009/10. This decrease is mainly due to reduction
in the VAT gap since 2008/09 following the reduction in the
standard rate of VAT from 17.5 per cent to 15 per cent between 1st
December 2008 and 31st December 2009.
www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/measuring-tax-gaps.htm
2. Business tax
2.1. The validity of SDLT information notices
The case of Katherine and Ralph Weber ([2011] UKFTT 437 TC01290)
considered whether an information notice issued by HMRC in February
2009 (the information notice legislation at the time was FA03 Sch10
paras 12 & 14) was properly given where the taxpayer asserted
that they never physically received the original
