The chancellor George Osborne set out a number of measures to clamp down on tax avoidance by business and those who embark on aggressive schemes in a personal capacity, although the extent of the measures were questioned by some in light of the new General Anti Abuse Rule introduced earlier this year.

'Today [5 December] we set out in the largest package of measures to tackle tax avoidance, tax evasion, fraud and error to raise over £9bn. We're going to tackle the growth of intermediaries disguising employment as false self employment, depriving workforces of basic employment rights like the minimum wage in a bid to avoid employer national insurance,' Osborne said.