Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the guidance entitled, Procurement policy note 03/14: promoting tax compliance, what procedures are in place to ensure that Government Departments are tax compliant in foreign jurisdictions.
The regulations set out in “Procurement policy note 03/14: promoting tax compliance” do not place government departments under tax obligations in foreign jurisdictions.
The 2015 Public Contract Regulations provide public bodies with the powers to exclude suppliers from a procurement where the supplier has been found guilty of breaching its obligations in relation to payment of taxes, and this has been established by a judicial or administrative decision having final effect within the relevant jurisdiction.
Any suppliers with tax obligations in foreign jurisdictions are required to certify that they have not been found guilty of breaching those obligations.