The Taxation Disciplinary Board (TDB) has reported in its annual report that it has dealt with a record number of complaints for its 2012 financial year, with 45 complaints from members of the public and professional bodies, while a further eight cases were heard by disciplinary tribunals.

The TDB - an independent body set up to deal with complaints and disciplinary matters involving members (including students and firms) of the Chartered Institute of Taxation, the Association of Taxation Technicians - has now announced that following an extensive review, it has introduced new powers to make interim orders in cases where the need for public protection requires the suspension of a member pending a full tribunal hearing.

TDB chair, Desmond Hudson, said the report once again highlights that the TDB should remain at the forefront of best practice.

'The board is particularly pleased that we have absorbed the increased caseload with no additional cost, no increase in case handling times and no significant increase in the number of cases carried forward at the year end. A growing number of complaints are raising more complex policy and procedural issues, adding to our workload, but we are pleased to see that attempts to challenge our procedures in the courts have all been dismissed.

'Our participant bodies, the profession and the public as a whole can continue to have every confidence in the board. We seek in all cases to balance the public interest in ensuring that our processes and responses to the concerns of complainants are both accessible and effective, whilst satisfying the reasonable expectation of members that our processes deliver fair and proportionate responses to complaints. Our disciplinary arrangements are set up primarily to protect the public, but by upholding professional standards they also help to maintain public confidence in the profession,' said Hudson.