Prescott Did Not Declare Gifts to Customs

Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott has been found to have broken rules on ministerial conduct at least three times when he accepted gifts and hospitality from a super casino bidder.

In another damning twist, it has been found out that Prescott likewise failed to declare the gifts he received to Customs, much like he failed to declare the trip he made to the Colorado estate of casino tycoon Philip Anschutz and the receipt of the cowboy outfit.

The heat also rubs off on Prime Minister Tony Blair, who has been under pressure to conduct his own investigation on Prescott. Blair has been stanch on not conducting a probe.

It is clearly outlined in the ministerial code that officials are under obligation to declare overseas gifts to customs "on importation". Prescott denied having breached the code on this act, stating that he did not intend to keep the gift.

Section 5.25(d) reads: "Gifts received overseas worth more than the normal travellers' allowances should be declared on importation to Customs and Excise who will advise on any duty and tax liability." A spokeswoman for Prescott said that the omission was due to the fact that officials knew that Prescott did not want to keep the cowboy outfit and therefore did not owe any duty.

She said: "The rules as set out by HMRC [Revenue and Customs] state that no customs duty or tax is payable on gifts received by ministers on visits overseas, where the gifts are retained by the relevant government department. If a minister wishes to retain a gift, then he or she would be liable for any tax or duty, and Customs would advise accordingly. In this case, the gifts had been retained by the department and thus no tax or duty was liable on them. It is a nonsense therefore to suggest that the code has been broken."