Law -
Customs & Excise (Victory
at last)
Cross-Channel
shoppers are to be allowed to bring more cheap
cigarettes into the country. Economic Secretary
John Healey, the minister responsible for Customs
and Excise, said the "indicative
levels" for travellers bringing cigarettes
into the country for their own use are to be
raised from 800 to 3,200 per person. The new
rules now mean a 20-a-day smoker can import a
near six month supply. As well as changes to the
cigarette allowance, the indicative level of hand
rolled tobacco allowed will rise from 1kg to 3kg.
The move, announced in a Commons written answer,
follows recent criticism of the Customs' tactics
in clamping down on travellers suspected of
trying to evade tobacco duty by bringing in
cigarettes to sell on the black market.
Mr Healey also said new regulations would abolish
the burden of proof on individuals to show that
that goods brought in were for their personal use
and require Customs to show that they were
intended to be sold. He also announced a further
crackdown on large-scale and repeat offenders
while The Treasury, in conjunction with the Lord
Chancellor's Department, is to review the current
appeals procedure and simplify it. The minister
said, "The measures I am announcing today
will help make the distinction between smugglers
and honest shoppers even clearer. They make clear
that Customs activity is legal and fair but tough
on those who attempt to smuggle."
He added large scale offenders would continue to
remain liable to have their vehicles seized and
confiscated - although smaller scale offenders
would be able to get their vehicles returned if
they pay the duty due. Treasury officials denied
that the measures were in response to recent
criticisms of Customs' tactics, insisting they
were part of a long-term strategy, but
acknowledged that they would make the system more
"proportionate".
Customs kept up their fight for the right to
continue bullying innocent booze cruisers. They
went to the High Court in a bid to reverse a
ruling by senior judges that stopped them picking
on cross-Channel shoppers and seizing their goods
and vehicles. HM Customs’ legal bid,
estimated to cost more than £500,000, went ahead
despite Chancellor Gordon Brown saying that
travellers should not be treated like criminals.
A
man bought a 15-year-old metallic grey Ford
Sierra - seized by Customs - for ONE POUND. He
said, “I went along to see how these things
work and bid a quid as a joke to feel part of the
action. I couldn’t believe my ears when the
auctioneer knocked it down to me. There must have
been 100 people there and they fell about
laughing. How much money would it have cost to
get that car to auction? There is storage,
transport from where it was seized and
administration costs. All that money has been
spent so they could recover the princely sum of a
quid. That does not add up to a good deal for
this country’s taxpayers.”
A Customs spokesman said, “If there is no
saleable value the vehicle has to be scrapped so
one Pound is better than nothing.”
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