Gino’s Contraband reveals an ordinary taxpayer’s harrowing battle with HMRC, exposing a flawed system where guilt is assumed and justice is hard-won. Why was this an important book for you to write? 

Initially, I wrote Gino’s Contraband: Guilty Until Proven Innocent (The Change Press) to make sense of my experience and heal from being treated by HMRC as presumed guilty for contraband smuggling activity and related charges. It was a case of mistaken identity, and although the case against me was ridiculously flimsy, I was not given the benefit of the doubt and put through a horrendous ordeal. Having the weight of the state and all its power bearing down on me – an innocent person – badly impacted my mental health and well-being. Through the process, I became aware that my story was not unique and tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of taxpayers, are being put through a similar ordeal, with our constitutional right to be presumed innocent and protected by the state circumvented by additional legislation and policies. Some victims have a common theme to their story (such as the Loan Charge Scandal victims) and have action groups to support their cause. But many suffer and struggle alone – unaware of each other’s stories – and in the absence of a Taxpayer Bill of Rights that would protect us and a well-publicised action group promoting taxpayer fairness.

How did you maintain hope and resilience during such a prolonged period of uncertainty?

For years, I understood the matter to be a scam. Even the police thought it was a scam and conducted surveillance outside my home to try to catch those hand-delivering threatening letters to me. When I eventually realised that the real HMRC had associated my name with their case, I was in a very bad way because of their measures. What helped maintain my hope and resilience was 1) the fact that I was innocent, 2) that HMRC was clearly suffering from systemic failures, 3) by nature, I am optimistic and resilient, and 4) the love and support of my nearest and dearest.

What systemic reforms could prevent stories like yours in the future?

We need a Taxpayer Bill of Rights in the UK and for the state to do a complete overhaul of legislation and policies that circumvent our human rights and cause unnecessary distress to innocent, law-abiding taxpayers. It is not right that the basis of our justice system was changed in the early 2000s when Sir Tony Blair, as Prime Minister, announced, ‘We are trying to fight 21st-century crime — antisocial behaviour, drug-dealing, binge-drinking, organised crime — with 19th-century methods, as if we still lived in the time of Dickens. The whole of our system starts from the proposition that its duty is to protect the innocent from being wrongly convicted. Don’t misunderstand me. That must be the duty of any criminal justice system. But surely our primary duty should be to allow law-abiding people to live in safety.’

This is how some political commentators described Blair’s new world order – ‘the criminal courts will be run on the utilitarian principle that the protection of the majority takes precedence over the liberty of the accused.’ (Ross Clark, The Spectator, 2005), ‘This has very little to do with the victims. Our aim, the government is really saying, is to put away as many criminals as possible and if, on our trawl, we happen to catch some people who have done nothing wrong then tough. (Marcel Berlin, The Guardian, 28 June 2006)’

Basically, good eggs broken – in the pursuit of the bad eggs – are simply collateral damage.

What advice would you give to someone facing a similar battle with institutional bureaucracy?

If the matter relates to tax, contact the All-Party Parliamentary Loan Charge and Taxpayer Fairness Group (Loan Charge and Taxpayer Fairness APPG) – an official Parliamentary Group comprising of Parliamentarians of all parties from both Houses of Parliament. At present, its focus is on getting justice for the Loan Charge Scandal victims, but its broader remit is to promote Taxpayer Fairness. For non-tax matters, contact your local UK Citizen’s Advice Bureau, and keep complete records of all interactions with your antagonist. Don’t be a victim. Believe in yourself and stand up for yourself. You might end up helping a great many more people.

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