Businesses in the UK should review and, if necessary, update how they handle employees’ concerns about corporate compliance to coincide with the implementation of a new whistleblower reward scheme by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC).
Businesses in the UK should review and, if necessary, update how they handle employees’ concerns about corporate compliance to coincide with the implementation of a new whistleblower reward scheme by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC).
HMRC published guidance relating to the scheme last November which came into effect on Monday. Under the scheme, individuals that report serious tax avoidance or evasion to HMRC that results in the authority collecting at least 1.5 million in unpaid tax, could get a financial reward of between 15 per cent and 30 per cent of the tax collected.
Whistleblower reward schemes have been operated by US and Canadian authorities for years. The HMRC scheme is the first such UK scheme to be introduced that is focused on economic crime, though the Competition and Markets Authority already offers financial rewards of up to 250,000 for information about cartel activity.
The introduction of the scheme is a clear signal of the UK authorities’ increasing reliance on whistleblowers as a source of intelligence in tackling economic crime and tax non‑compliance.
This sits against a backdrop of a marked rise in whistleblowing activity more generally, with organisations already grappling with a greater volume and wider range of complaints.
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