The former president of the Association of Taxation Technicians (ATT) is on trial at Birmingham Crown Court for an alleged £5m pension scam.

According to the Mail on Sunday Andrew Meeson is alleged to have filed tax relief claims using the details of a fictitious pension scheme.

HMRC processes monthly pension scheme claims for tax relief payment but does not require claims to be detailed by individual scheme or for the identification of member contributions.

Meeson, 52, allegedly filed the claims for the Moya group of payroll firms. He is also alleged to have signed the claims personally, and dealt with queries from HMRC.

Prosecutor David Farrer QC said that Meeson and colleagues 'invented two relatively large pension schemes with completely fictitious members and over a substantial period "reclaimed" tax from the Revenue on non-existent contributions'.

The court heard that Meeson, a high-profile accountant, had himself advised HMRC on tax evasion, and that he, together with Peter Bradley, 45, and Alison Bradley, 47, were directors of Tudor Capital Management, a scheme administrator.

The prosecution has also accused the three of hiding tax relief claims for the fictitious Moya schemes among claims from genuine schemes. The case continues.