11Disclosure of tax information by Inland Revenue to facilitate application for declaration that accounts are defective
(1)After section 245C of the Companies Act 1985 (c. 6) insert—
“245DDisclosure of information held by Inland Revenue to persons authorised to apply to court
(1)Information which is held by or on behalf of the Commissioners of Inland Revenue may be disclosed to a person who is authorised under section 245C of this Act, or under Article 253C of the Companies (Northern Ireland) Order 1986 (S.I. 1986/1032 (N.I. 6)), if the disclosure—
(a)is made for a permitted purpose, and
(b)is made by the Commissioners or is authorised by them.
(2)Such information—
(a)may be so disclosed despite any other restriction on the disclosure of information whether imposed by any statutory provision or otherwise, but
(b)in the case of personal data (within the meaning of the Data Protection Act 1998), may not be disclosed in contravention of that Act.
(3)For the purposes of subsection (1), a disclosure is made for a permitted purpose if it is made for the purpose of facilitating—
(a)the taking of steps by the authorised person to discover whether there are grounds for an application to the court under section 245B of this Act or Article 253B of the Companies (Northern Ireland) Order 1986; or
(b)a determination by the authorised person as to whether or not to make such an application.
(4)The power of the Commissioners to authorise a disclosure under subsection (1)(b) may be delegated (either generally or for a specified purpose) to an officer of the Board of Inland Revenue.
245ERestrictions on use and further disclosure of information disclosed under section 245D
(1)Information that is disclosed to an authorised person under section 245D may not be used except in or in connection with—
(a)taking steps to discover whether there are grounds for an application to the court as mentioned in section 245D(3)(a);
(b)determining whether or not to make such an application; or
(c)proceedings on any such application.
(2)Information that is disclosed to an authorised person under section 245D may not be further disclosed except—
(a)to the person to whom the information relates; or
(b)in or in connection with proceedings on any such application to the court.
(3)A person who contravenes subsection (1) or (2) is guilty of an offence and liable to imprisonment or a fine, or both.
(4)It is a defence for a person charged with an offence under subsection (3) to prove—
(a)that he did not know, and had no reason to suspect, that the information had been disclosed under section 245D; or
(b)that he took all reasonable steps and exercised all due diligence to avoid the commission of the offence.
(5)Sections 732 (restriction on prosecutions), 733(2) and (3) (liability of individuals for corporate default) and 734 (criminal proceedings against unincorporated bodies) apply to offences under this section.”
(2)After Article 253C of the Companies (Northern Ireland) Order 1986 (S.I. 1986/1032 (N.I. 6)) insert—
“253DDisclosure of information held by Inland Revenue to persons authorised to apply to court
(1)Information which is held by or on behalf of the Commissioners of Inland Revenue may be disclosed to a person who is authorised under Article 253C, or under section 245C of the Companies Act 1985, if the disclosure—
(a)is made for a permitted purpose, and
(b)is made by the Commissioners or is authorised by them.
(2)Such information—
(a)may be so disclosed despite any other restriction on the disclosure of information whether imposed by any statutory provision or otherwise, but
(b)in the case of personal data (within the meaning of the Data Protection Act 1998), may not be disclosed in contravention of that Act.
(3)For the purposes of paragraph (1), a disclosure is made for a permitted purpose if it is made for the purpose of facilitating—
(a)the taking of steps by the authorised person to discover whether there are grounds for an application to the court under Article 253B or section 245B of the Companies Act 1985; or
(b)a determination by the authorised person as to whether or not to make such an application.
(4)The power of the Commissioners to authorise a disclosure under paragraph (1)(b) may be delegated (either generally or for a specified purpose) to an officer of the Board of Inland Revenue.
253ERestrictions on use and further disclosure of information disclosed under Article 253D
(1)Information that is disclosed to an authorised person under Article 253D may not be used except in or in connection with—
(a)taking steps to discover whether there are grounds for an application to the court as mentioned in Article 253D(3)(a);
(b)determining whether or not to make such an application; or
(c)proceedings on any such application.
(2)Information that is disclosed to an authorised person under Article 253D may not be further disclosed except—
(a)to the person to whom the information relates; or
(b)in or in connection with proceedings on any such application to the court.
(3)A person who contravenes paragraph (1) or (2) is guilty of an offence and liable to imprisonment or a fine, or both.
(4)It is a defence for a person charged with an offence under paragraph (3) to prove—
(a)that he did not know, and had no reason to suspect, that the information had been disclosed under Article 253D; or
(b)that he took all reasonable steps and exercised all due diligence to avoid the commission of the offence.
(5)Articles 680 (restriction on prosecutions), 680A (liability of individuals for corporate default) and 680B (criminal proceedings against unincorporated bodies) apply to offences under this Article.”