Local Government Finance Act 2012

17 Power for HMRC to supply information for purposes of council tax E+W+S

(1) Schedule 2 to the LGFA 1992 (administration) is amended as follows.

(2) After paragraph 15 insert—

“15A (1) A Revenue and Customs official may supply information which is held by the Revenue and Customs in connection with a function of the Revenue and Customs to a qualifying person for prescribed purposes relating to council tax.

(2) The following are qualifying persons for the purpose of this paragraph—

(a) a billing authority in England;

(b) a person authorised to exercise any function of such an authority relating to council tax;

(c) a person providing services to such an authority relating to council tax.

(3) Information supplied under this paragraph may be used for another prescribed purpose relating to council tax.

(4) Information supplied under this paragraph may be supplied to another qualifying person for a prescribed purpose relating to council tax (whether or not that is a purpose for which it was supplied).

(5) In this paragraph—

• “Revenue and Customs official”,

• “the Revenue and Customs”, and

• “function of the Revenue and Customs”,

have the same meaning as in section 18 of the Commissioners for Revenue and Customs Act 2005.

15B (1) A Revenue and Customs official may supply information which is held by the Revenue and Customs in connection with a function of the Revenue and Customs to a qualifying person for prescribed purposes relating to council tax.

(2) The following are qualifying persons for the purpose of this paragraph—

(a) a billing authority in Wales;

(b) a person authorised to exercise any function of such an authority relating to council tax;

(c) a person providing services to such an authority relating to council tax.

(3) Information supplied under this paragraph may be used for another prescribed purpose relating to council tax.

(4) Information supplied under this paragraph may be supplied to another qualifying person for a prescribed purpose relating to council tax (whether or not that is a purpose for which it was supplied).

(5) In this paragraph—

• “Revenue and Customs official”, “the Revenue and Customs” and “function of the Revenue and Customs” have the same meaning as in section 18 of the Commissioners for Revenue and Customs Act 2005;

• “prescribed” means prescribed by regulations made by the Welsh Ministers.

(6) Regulations under this paragraph must not be made except with the consent of the Commissioners for Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs.

(7) A statutory instrument containing regulations under this paragraph is subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of the National Assembly for Wales.

15C (1) A Revenue and Customs official may supply information which is held by the Revenue and Customs in connection with a function of the Revenue and Customs to a qualifying person for prescribed purposes relating to council tax.

(2) The following are qualifying persons for the purpose of this paragraph—

(a) a local authority;

(b) a person authorised to exercise any function of such an authority relating to council tax;

(c) a person providing services to such an authority relating to council tax.

(3) Information supplied under this paragraph may be used for another prescribed purpose relating to council tax.

(4) Information supplied under this paragraph may be supplied to another qualifying person for a prescribed purpose relating to council tax (whether or not that is a purpose for which it was supplied).

(5) In this paragraph—

• “Revenue and Customs official”, “the Revenue and Customs” and “function of the Revenue and Customs” have the same meaning as in section 18 of the Commissioners for Revenue and Customs Act 2005;

• “prescribed” means prescribed by regulations made by the Scottish Ministers.

(6) Regulations under this paragraph must not be made except with the consent of the Commissioners for Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs.

(7) Regulations under this paragraph—

(a) are subject to the negative procedure; and

(b) may make—

(i) different provision for different purposes, including different provision for different areas or for different authorities, and

(ii) such incidental, consequential, transitional or supplementary provision as the Scottish Ministers think necessary or expedient.

15D (1) A person to whom sub-paragraph (2) applies is guilty of an offence if the person discloses without lawful authority any information—

(a) which comes to the person by virtue of paragraph 15A, 15B or 15C, and

(b) which relates to a particular person.

(2) This sub-paragraph applies to—

(a) a qualifying person for the purpose of paragraph 15A, 15B or 15C;

(b) a person who is or has been a director, member of the committee of management, manager, secretary or other similar officer of a person within paragraph (a);

(c) a person who is or has been an employee of such a person.

(3) A person guilty of an offence under this paragraph is liable—

(a) on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 2 years or a fine, or both;

(b) on summary conviction, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months or a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum, or both.

(4) It is not an offence under this paragraph—

(a) to disclose information in the form of a summary or collection of information so framed as not to enable information relating to any particular person to be identified from it;

(b) to disclose information which has previously been disclosed to the public with lawful authority.

(5) It is a defence for a person (“D”) charged with an offence under this paragraph to prove that at the time of the alleged offence—

(a) D believed that D was making the disclosure in question with lawful authority and had no reasonable cause to believe otherwise, or

(b) D believed that the information in question had previously been disclosed to the public with lawful authority and had no reasonable cause to believe otherwise.

(6) For the purposes of this paragraph, “lawful authority” has the meaning given by section 123 of the Social Security Administration Act 1992.

(7) In relation to an offence under this paragraph committed in England and Wales before the commencement of section 154(1) of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 (increase in maximum term that may be imposed on summary conviction of offence triable either way) the reference in sub-paragraph (3)(b) to 12 months is to be taken as a reference to 6 months.”

(3) In paragraph 11 (supply of information to authorities: England and Wales), after sub-paragraph (1) insert—

“(1A) Information may be prescribed under sub-paragraph (1)(d) by reference to—

(a) how the person concerned came to be in possession or control of the information;

(b) the purpose for which it is requested by the authority.”

(4) In paragraph 12 (supply of information to authorities: Scotland), after sub-paragraph (1) insert—

“(1A) Information may be prescribed under sub-paragraph (1)(d) by reference to—

(a) how the person concerned came to be in possession or control of the information;

(b) the purpose for which it is requested by the authority.”

(5) In paragraph 16 (supply of information by authorities), after sub-paragraph (2) insert—

“(3) Information may be prescribed under sub-paragraph (2)(c) by reference to—

(a) how the first-mentioned authority obtained the information;

(b) the purpose for which the first-mentioned authority believes that the information would be useful to the other authority.”

(6) In Schedule 11 to the LGFA 1988, in paragraph 8(3)(ea) (regulations about procedure before tribunals)—

(a) for sub-paragraph (iv) substitute—

“(iv) paragraph 15A or 15B of Schedule 2 to the 1992 Act or regulations under that Schedule;”,

(b) omit the “or” following that sub-paragraph, and

(c) after “1996” insert “ or of information supplied under section 131 of the Welfare Reform Act 2012 for purposes relating to council tax; ”.