LONDON (Sputnik) – The new task force will be jointly led by Her Majesty Revenue and Customs and the National Crime Agency, and will report progress to Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne and Home Secretary Theresa May later this year, the government said.
"The Prime Minister has committed to provide resources to ensure that the files are fully investigated, once shared with HMRC [Her Majesty Revenue and Customs], including initial new funding of up to 10 million pounds to support the taskforce’s work," the government said Sunday.
HMRC experts have tracked down $2.8 billion from offshore tax evaders in the past six years, and are investigating 700 leads of their links to the Panamanian law firm at the center of the offshore scandal, Mossack Fonseca.
British Prime Minister David Cameron has come under fire following the April 3 revelations for failing to immediately acknowledge his father’s directorship of an offshore investment fund run from the Bahamas. Cameron was later revealed to have received a tax-free inheritance from his father and given gifts by his mother in possible avoidance of inheritance tax.
The inheritance amassed by Cameron totaled $711,500 at the current exchange rate.
Cameron is expected to address lawmakers over tax evasion allegations, as well as outline plans for a new law to crack down on tax evaders, within hours.
