If we can't trust HMRC who can we trust?
Today's news that up to £1.6 billion may have been overpaid by UK workers has sent many taxpayers in the UK scurrying for their latest payslip. This could not have come at a worse time for the UK government with national debt continuing to mushroom, the UK budget stretched to the limit and a general election to be held within 12 months. When you also take into account that auditors of UK government spending refused to sign off a number of government departments, this is starting to turn into a fiasco.
Gordon Brown prided himself on his prudent financial policies when he was Chancellor of the Exchequer and while he may attempt to pass much of the blame to his predecessor Alistair Darling, there is no doubt that the UK government as a whole has made some serious errors. The unquantified investment into the UK banking sector appears to be one of the major issues raised by auditors, due to the fact that the potential investment, and therefore potential loss, is at this moment in time unlimited.
If Gordon Brown does finally say goodbye to number 10 Downing Street at the next election he would no doubt be dismayed by the apparent collapse in UK government finances and the serious issues which have arisen within the Treasury and across many other UK government departments.
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