managing serious defaulters

The government has seen a dramatic rise in the number of taxpayers facing scrutiny through a special initiative dedicated to combatting tax evasion.

A total of 6,051 individuals and businesses were referred to HMRC’s managing serious defaulters (MSD) programme in 2014/15, up 31% on the previous year’s 4,624, according to official figures released following a freedom of information request by accountancy group Baker Tilly.

The numbers show growth of 423% between 2013/14 and 2012/13 (1,094).