Hundreds of wealthy UK taxpayers have been sent letters by HM Revenue & Customs over possible large-scale tax evasion, the BBC has learned. It is understood HMRC has acquired a list of high net-worth individuals with accounts at the Swiss division of HSBC. The list was stolen by an employee and passed to the taxman by the French authorities. The bank is not accused of any wrongdoing. The campaign comes after the government announced a crackdown on tax avoidance.
I think we can all agree that large scale tax avoidance is wrong, but government agencies purchasing stolen goods to gain evidence seems to be stepping on dubious ground. In this case the HMRC was passed the stolen data from the French Government, although in 2008 Germany’s finance ministry paid an informant a reported 5 million euros (£4.2m) for a stolen computer disc containing the names of hundreds of clients at a wealth management firm. Just how far into the dark arts should the long arm of the Taxman reach?
