Celeb taxes back under the spotlight as HMRC trawls 4,000 accounts

Celebrity tax affairs are set to be thrust under the spotlight once again after a whistleblower leaked a list of names to HMRC.

Government tax officials have already begun trawling through the names, which as well as celebrities includes known criminals.

All of the individuals have accounts with HSBC Jersey.  HMRC is looking at a list of more than 4,000 individuals, the Times said.

Earlier this year, the tax affairs of Jimmy Carr (pictured) were called into question after it emerged he had used a Jersey-based tax avoidance scheme to shelter £3.3 million.

Carr apologised for his involvement. More than 1,000 individuals participated in the same scheme and expected to pay as little as 1.25% tax on their earnings.