UNPAID tax bills amounting to almost £11,000 look set to be shouldered by Petersfield Town Council. An auditor's report has revealed that no VAT has been paid by town council tenants for service charges over the last three years. It means that, collectively, the businesses and community groups occupying council-owned buildings owe £10,853.89 to the Inland Revenue. But instead of asking them to stump up the cash themselves, Petersfield Town Council looks set to dig in to its own coffers to pay the debt. At a meeting of the finance and general purposes committee last week, opinion was divided on the matter. Chris Jenner said he felt that Festival Hall tenants such as Perkin Slade, Insync, Communiweb and Boulter Mossman should not have to pay for the oversight. He said: "I don't think we have got any option but to absorb this ourselves. Somebody has to pay and I think it should be us." Auditor Alan Harland had initially raised the alarm when he realised that VAT was payable because Petersfield Town Council was seen to have provided a "service" to its tenants. This included forwarding items such as utility bills and rates to the tenants, incurring the "standard" 17.5 per cent charge instead of five per cent if it had been sent directly. Finance chairman Vaughan Clarke said that staff at the town council were not at fault since they had no reason to believe VAT would be applicable. But some councillors said the auditor should have spotted the problem three years ago. And Brian Dutton argued that the auditor's company should be partly liable for the costs. He said: "It is not our money we are dealing with, it is the tax payers'. "I feel that we should try to recover some of the money from our accountant for failing to keep us informed of the changes. "If he's highly-trained, he should be aware of it. Why did he not inform us three years ago?" Town clerk Neil Hitch admitted that he was "in a quandary" as to what members should do, but he said provisions were in place to prevent a recurrence of the problem. It was eventually recommended that the full sum be paid by the council, including any penalty incurred. But a final decision on the matter will be made at full council on Monday.
