An investigation has been launched after seven million cigarettes were illegally imported into Britain.
The cigarettes would have lost the Treasury £1.3m in tax if sold on the black market
Border officials found the cache in a freezer unit on a lorry at Newhaven ferry port in East Sussex.
The vehicle had travelled from Dieppe in France.
It is thought the Treasury would have lost £1.3m in tax if the cigarettes had been sold on the black market.
The 42-year-old lorry driver from Lanarkshire has been arrested and bailed until July.
The cigarettes will be burned at a power station to fuel the National Grid while inquiries continue, a HMRC spokesman said.
I don’t smoke but i think thats a waste the government should set up a stall down the barras and make some coin to pay for more bankers to have cushy life.
An investigation has been launched after seven million cigarettes were illegally imported into Britain.
The cigarettes would have lost the Treasury £1.3m in tax if sold on the black market
Border officials found the cache in a freezer unit on a lorry at Newhaven ferry port in East Sussex.
The vehicle had travelled from Dieppe in France.
It is thought the Treasury would have lost £1.3m in tax if the cigarettes had been sold on the black market.
The 42-year-old lorry driver from Lanarkshire has been arrested and bailed until July.
The cigarettes will be burned at a power station to fuel the National Grid while inquiries continue, a HMRC spokesman said.
I don’t smoke but i think thats a waste the government should set up a stall down the barras and make some coin to pay for more bankers to have cushy life.
can never understand this fake ■■■ thing, think about much effort must go into setting up a factory to produce the ■■■■, print the packets n boxes to make them look like the authentic items, surely if you’ve gone to all that time and expense you might as well stick your own name on em and sell them legit?
I think the government is mad putting the amount of tax on the things, there definately bad businessman.
They recon they loose about £3 Billion a year in knock off ■■■■, now they make £8 billion off tobacco alone every year and it apparently costs £4 billion to treat smoking related diseases. So we have £4 billion to put into other areas, but they could potentially have £7 billion if they put the tax down a bit and get people buying them from the shops.
NikNik:
I think the government is mad putting the amount of tax on the things, there definately bad businessman.
They recon they loose about £3 Billion a year in knock off ■■■■, now they make £8 billion off tobacco alone every year and it apparently costs £4 billion to treat smoking related diseases. So we have £4 billion to put into other areas, but they could potentially have £7 billion if they put the tax down a bit and get people buying them from the shops.
Add to that the cost of customs - all they seem bothered about is looking for baccy, most of em could be cut, I do not know the numbers but HMRC have dramatically increased the number of port staff just to look for tobacco, if we signed up to the Schengen agreement the govt would save billions - but oh no - poor old Joe Public has got a packet too many of ■■■■ - b@st@rds, oh yes and you are questioned by customs under “the prevention of terrorism act” work that one out.
NikNik:
I think the government is mad putting the amount of tax on the things, there definately bad businessman.
They recon they loose about £3 Billion a year in knock off ■■■■, now they make £8 billion off tobacco alone every year and it apparently costs £4 billion to treat smoking related diseases. So we have £4 billion to put into other areas, but they could potentially have £7 billion if they put the tax down a bit and get people buying them from the shops.
Add to that the cost of customs - all they seem bothered about is looking for baccy, most of em could be cut, I do not know the numbers but HMRC have dramatically increased the number of port staff just to look for tobacco, if we signed up to the Schengen agreement the govt would save billions - but oh no - poor old Joe Public has got a packet too many of ■■■■ - b@st@rds, oh yes and you are questioned by customs under “the prevention of terrorism act” work that one out.
I’m sure customs would be much better looking for drugs, firearms and explosives. But no ■■■■ seem to be a softer target unlike C4.
