The chancellor reiterated the government's commitment to tackling offshore evasion of taxes in today's pre-Budget report by announcing a new tougher penalty for anyone not taking advantage of the recent amnesties. Referring to the New Disclosure Opportunity (NDO) and the Liechtenstein disclosure facility, Alistair Darling announced that legislation would be brought forward to ensure that those failing to declare offshore tax liabilities will face the tough penalties attracted by deliberate tax evasion. There will also be a new requirement to notify HM Revenue & Customs when opening offshore bank accounts in certain jurisdictions, supported by a separate penalty regime. Evading tax offshore could therefore result in combined penalties of up to 200% of the unpaid tax. The total package of measures to protect tax revenues raises £165m by 2011-12 and protects around £5bn of tax receipts a year from erosion by tax evasion and avoidance. Paul Harrison, UK head of tax investigations at KPMG, said: 'Our phones have been red-hot with people wanting to take advantage of the carrot on offer through the NDO. I now expect our phones to be even hotter. 'I would definitely encourage anyone concerned about their offshore tax affairs to take advice on their position as soon as possible and certainly before the deadline expires on 4 January. It seems there is an even bigger stick on the horizon now, and time is running out.'