Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many times HM Revenue and Customs has used the direct recovery of debts power; and what estimate he has made of the average sum so recovered.
So far this year, following visits by HMRC staff to taxpayers at their homes/offices as part of the DRD process, £20m in unpaid tax has been collected from those with the means to pay without actually needing to exercise the full DRD power, as this is a last resort. As part of this process, the need to deduct directly from a debtors bank account has taken place twice, with the average sum recovered being £39,246.