THE GROUP behind the former Carlton Hotel in Sandown has been named by the government as a tax defaulter.

The Carlton Hotel closed after the 2015 season, and was sold to Premier Inn. The building was completely demolished by the hotel chain and a new Premier Inn opened on the Sandown seafront site in early 2021.

Government data shows that the hotel operator and property developer CHG (Carlton Hotel Group) Holdings Ltd received nearly £250,000 in penalties for unpaid taxes.

CHG Holdings Ltd, which has offices based in Commercial Road, Poole, was charged with penalties of £247,462.98 for failing to comply with tax obligations or deliberately filing errors in tax returns, according to the government.

The period of default was spanning more than nine years, from July 1, 2010 to September 30, 2019.

The people involved in CHG Holdings who live on the Isle of Wight are Jacqueline Pink and Leslie Pink, of Church Road, Bembridge.

Attempts were made to reach CHG Holdings but there was no response.

An HMRC spokesperson said: “We are committed to making sure people pay the tax they owe.

“For the minority who refuse to pay, HMRC has a range of tools available and we are able to publish the names of those penalised under civil procedures for deliberately defaulting on certain tax obligations.

“This is about influencing behaviour by encouraging defaulters to engage with HMRC.”