'Aggressive' taxman losing more VAT appeals

The Telegraph reports HMRC figures show that in 2011-12 the taxman handled 30,000 appeals from businesses about VAT penalties and cancelled more than 18,000 after reviewing the evidence. Law firm Pinsent Masons obtains the statistics. Pinsent Masons head of tax Jason Collins said: "HMRC is operating under a lot of pressure to increase its revenue and this pressure is particularly acute in VAT.” The Telegraph said HMRC was already under fire from the National Audit Office over its VAT record. Adding its management had been criticised for allowing unpaid VAT to build up to £9.6bn out of an...