This significant decline, from 1,417 civil inquiries in the tax year 2018-19 to just 627 in 2022-23, signals a troubling trend in the enforcement of tax laws against offshore, corporate, and wealthy taxpayers investigated by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) fraud unit.
This shift has sparked a wave of criticism, with campaigners and critics arguing that HMRC’s dwindling enforcement actions are allowing tax dodgers to operate with impunity, undermining the integrity of the tax system.
Likely? Definitely don’t, and by design. A statistically significant portion of the tax evaders are in parliament, no doubt.