Welcome to the October 2023 Newsletter from Walsh & Co

HMRC has implored nearly 430,000 young people to claim cash stored in their Child Trust Fund (CTF). The accounts began to mature in late 2020 when the first children turned 18.

Meanwhile, MPs who make up the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) have stated that the government has been slow to recover losses totalling £1.1 billion generated by fraud and error in Covid-19 grant schemes.

HMRC urges nearly 430,000 young people to claim CTF cash

HMRC has urged almost 430,000 young people with an unclaimed CTF to claim their cash.

CTFs are tax-free savings accounts that were created for every child born between 1 September 2002 and 2 January 2011. The government contributed an initial deposit of at least £250. Family and friends can contribute up to a maximum of £9,000 in any one year into an existing CTF account.

CTF accounts began to mature in September 2020 when the first children turned 18. The PAC recently stated that CTFs are not reaching many of the people they were designed to help, with some young people unaware that they have money waiting to be claimed.

HMRC revealed that there are currently 5.3 million open CTF accounts, and that more than 500,000 matured CTF accounts have been claimed or transferred into an ISA since September 2020.

Commenting on the issue, Angela MacDonald, Deputy Chief Executive at HMRC, said: 'Many 18-21-year-olds are starting out in first jobs or apprenticeships, starting university or moving into their first home and their CTF is a pot of money with their name on.

'I would encourage young people to use the online tool to track it down or, for parents of teenagers, to speak to them to ensure they're aware of their CTF. It could make a real difference to their future plans.'

Government slow to recover over £1 billion Covid grant fraud

The government has been slow to recover losses of £1.1 billion from fraud and error in Covid grant schemes, according to MPs in the PAC.

The latest PAC report found after spending £22.6 billion on business support schemes during the pandemic, the government had only recovered £20.9 million of the estimated £1.1 billion in fraud and error losses by May 2023.

The Department for Business and Trade (DBT) said it would take until the end of 2025 to recover the losses from fraudulent claims and estimated that it would cost between £400 million and £500 million to check the veracity of every claim.

The Covid grant scheme ran for two years from March 2020 to March 2022, and local authorities handled applications from businesses.

PAC Chair, Dame Meg Hillier MP, said: 'The government must not wait for the conclusions of the Covid inquiry to learn the lessons laid out in this report. Never again should a national emergency find policy being written as we go along, without firm planning and good local data, with local authorities not properly funded to work in partnership on the support required.

'The next emergency must find the government rigorously prepared with an understanding of the optimal means to support businesses through difficult times.

'The lack of planning from government also meant that a door was left wide open in these schemes to fraudsters who took shameful financial advantage of schemes that were designed with national solidarity in mind.'

ESSENTIAL TAX DATES FOR OCTOBER

1 October         
Due date for payment of Corporation Tax for period ended 31 December 2022.

5 October        
Deadline for notifying HMRC of new sources of taxable income or gains or liability to the High Income Child Benefit Charge for 2022/23 if no tax return has been issued.

14 October      
Due date for income tax for the CT61 quarter to 30 September 2023.

19 October      
Tax and NICs due under a 2022/23 PAYE Settlement Agreement.
PAYE, Student loan and CIS deductions are due for the month to 5 October 2023.
PAYE quarterly payments are due for small employers for the pay periods 6 July 2023 to 5 October 2023.

31 October      
Deadline for submitting 'paper' 2022/23 self assessment returns.

QUOTE OF THE MONTH

'Regardless of size or sector, 88% of our members want to see an industrial strategy that defines long-term objectives for business in terms of priorities and policies.'

Jonathan Geldart, Director General of the Institute of Directors (IoD), commenting on a letter sent by the business group to Chancellor Jeremy Hunt which outlines five policy recommendations to help drive UK economic growth.

ON OUR WEBSITE

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