The top 10 deliberate defaulters on the November list included a farmer from Essex, Ecclestone’s solicitor who lost an appeal at the Upper Tribunal after not declaring income of almost £40m over a 14-year period, and a luxury cruise line wholesaler of food and drink.

In total, a record £52.3m was owed by 167 deliberate tax defaulters in the last quarter, more than double the previous £24.3m. They owed £29.1m in taxes, and nearly as much in penalties at £23.2m. There were only 128 individuals and companies on the previous quarter’s list, for a total of £24.3m in tax and penalties showing a significant increase in the amount of tax owed to HMRC.

The annual total of individuals has reached an all-time high of 558. In 2023 there were 543 individuals named by November.