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Written question asked by Michelle Thomson (Independent (affiliation)) on Wednesday, 7 December 2016, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 12 December 2016. It was answered by Jane Ellison (Conservative) on Friday, 16 December 2016 on behalf of the Treasury.

Construction: Self-employed

Question

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps are being taken to prevent cases of false self-employment in the construction industry.

Answer

The Government introduced legislation in Finance Act 2014 to tackle false self-employment arising through intermediaries. Where there is control over the worker, as a result of the legislation, an intermediary has to operate PAYE and pay National Insurance Contributions. It was estimated that this would lead to 200,000 workers being correctly treated as employed.

Since April 2015, intermediaries also have to submit a quarterly electronic return if they have made payments to a worker without deductions under PAYE. The first returns were made to HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) in July and November 2015, and HMRC is using the information to tackle false self-employment through intermediaries.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
56633
Session
2016-17
Subjects
Construction Fraud Industry Self-employed
Link
View this Written question on www.parliament.uk