HMRC loses over £800m to small business ‘phoenixing’ September 12, 2025 HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) has lost more than £800m – more than previously estimated – through a tax loophole open to abuse by small businesses in the UK. The practice, known as ‘phoenixing‘, is where companies are repeatedly liquidate then set up as a new, identical, debt-free business. The tax authority lost £836m to this [...]
Rayner scandal piles pressure on HMRC as tax surveillance force swells September 9, 2025 HMRC has increased the number of staff trained to physically monitor suspected tax evaders, as pressure mounts over Angela Rayner’s £40,000 stamp duty scandal. Official figures, obtained via Freedom of Information (FOI) and shared with City AM, show that 337 staff are now trained in covert surveillance, up from 171 people two years ago, in [...]
HMRC names barrister in tax avoidance list for first time September 4, 2025 In an unprecedented move, HMRC has added a practising barrister, identified as the ‘designer’ of a tax avoidance scheme, to its list of tax avoidance promoters. Tax barrister Setu Kamal, with 20 years of experience, stands accused of designing four tax avoidance schemes and producing the contract templates crucial to their operation. Those schemes were [...]
Clock ticking on Making Tax Digital as HMRC struggles to win over SMEs September 4, 2025 With six months until nearly 800,000 self-employed people and landlords join Making Tax Digital (MTD) for income tax, HMRC is intensifying efforts to get more taxpayers to test the system. But the numbers so far paint a sobering picture of the challenge ahead for the agency. Data revealed that 2,400 users have joined HMRC’s beta [...]
Angela Rayner on the brink: Deputy PM underpaid stamp duty on purchase of £800,000 property September 3, 2025 Deputy prime minister Angela Rayner has referred herself to the standards watchdog after she admitted to underpaying stamp duty on her second home in Hove. A spokesperson for Keir Starmer has refused to confirm the date Rayner informed the Prime Minister about her tax dealings, raising questions on when he found out about new tax [...]
Salford Red Devils handed HMRC lifeline by tax authorities September 3, 2025 Super League side Salford Red Devils have had a winding-up petition issued by HMRC adjourned for a second time. City AM exclusively revealed in May that the troubled rugby league club had been hit with a winding-up petition by tax authorities after it was reported that the club owed HMRC £500,000. But the petition was [...]
Thousands face fines after HMRC misses CGT update August 29, 2025 Tax experts have warned that “tens of thousands” of people could fall foul of penalties this year after tech issues left HMRC’s online filing system unable to properly reflect the recent changes to capital gains tax as implemented in Rachel Reeves’ first budget last year. The chancellor’s Autumn Budget increased CGT rates on disposals of [...]
CPS charges former Entain execs over alleged bribery August 28, 2025 The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has charged 11 individuals, including five former Entain executives, with several offences, including bribery and conspiracy to defraud, in connection with its investigation into the company’s former Turkish business. Commenting in a press statement, CPS’s chief crown prosecutor, Hannah von Dadelsze, confirmed that it was authorised to prosecute 11 individuals [...]
Thousands of savers overcharged on pension withdrawals by HMRC August 26, 2025 Thousands of people have claimed a refund on emergency tax on pensions after the HM Revenues & Customs (HMRC) overcharged savers an eye watering amount on their withdrawals. In total, 6,000 people successfully claimed a refund in the 2023-2024 financial year, a 20 per cent increase from the year before, according to figures obtained by [...]
Thousands of pensioners overcharged £10,000 on pension withdrawals August 25, 2025 Thousands of pensioners have claimed back more than £10,000 after being overcharged tax on their pension withdrawals, new analysis shows. A handful of people in the UK were given a refund worth more than £100,000. The HMRC figures, which were obtained by Royal London through a freedom of information (FOI) request, show an increase in [...]