Stockbroker belt ‘littered’ with tax dodgers

Windsor followed by St Albans top the list of tax avoidance hotspots, disclosures to HMRC show

WINDSOR has been named as the taxdodging capital of England, as experts warn that the stockbroker belt is “littered with tax avoidance hotspots”.

There were 23 disclosures per 100,000 people of unpaid tax made to HMRC last year in the town, and neigh- bouring Maidenhead in Berkshire. This is the highest concentration of tax evaders in all 279 areas of the country and more than three times the average of seven per 100,000, analysis found.

Experts have warned that the socalled “stockbroker belt” – made up of affluent towns stretching across the Home Counties – has some of the country’s highest levels of tax avoidance.

They believe this is because affluent areas are more likely to be home to rich residents who have the most crippling tax bills. St Albans, one of the most affluent areas of Hertfordshire which has its own “millionaires’ row”, came second in the ranking, with 20 disclosures per 100,000 people. Guildford in Surrey ranked third with 17, while Tunbridge Wells came seventh with 15.

The university towns of Oxford and Cambridge also featured in the top 20 in 12th and ninth place respectively.

The analysis was carried out by UHY Hacker Young, a national accountancy group which submitted freedom of information requests to HMRC.

Sean Glancy, a partner at the firm, said: “The Home Counties is home to many high net worth individuals and well-paid city commuters. These are the groups most likely to have the highest income tax bills – leading to greater incentives to find ways to reduce payments. For those with unpaid tax bills, coming forward and making a disclosure to HMRC is the best route forward.

“HMRC is often more lenient in terms of the fines handed out in cases where a disclosure has been made.”

Mr Glancy said individuals have become increasingly likely to admit tax avoidance, which is not illegal, in order to escape tharsh penalties from HMRC.

Whistleblowers coming forward to report tax dodging is also increasing, according to UHY Hacker Young.

The number of reports made to the taxman has risen by 10 per cent in the past year, their analysis revealed. Some 66,000 tips were filed by informers in 2018-19, and 73,000 in 2019-20.

So-called “furlough fraud” may also be driving up the number of whistleblowing reports, the firm’s analysis also found. By July 1 this year, some 4,500 employees had alerted HMRC to the fact their employer may be abusing the scheme.