HMRC to examine false self-employment

HMRC has set up a specialist employment status and intermediaries team to investigate concerns surrounding certain employment practices, KPMG has explained.
The team’s remit is to take ‘all necessary steps’ to ensure that companies are paying the correct amount of tax and NIC, which will include both interest and penalties if applicable. The move is intended to clamp down on those companies operating in the ‘gig economy’ who incorrectly classify their workers as self-employed.
The decision to create a specialist team at HMRC comes in the wake of a letter from Frank Field MP to Jane Ellison, financial secretary to the Treasury, raising his concerns about the alleged ‘[chronic] low pay and poor working conditions’ at certain companies. Incorrect classification of workers is estimated to cost the Exchequer £300m a year in unpaid Employer’s NIC, as well as restricting workers’ access to statutory employment rights.
The Road Haulage Association said it was seeking details.