EXCLUSIVE from @oliver_wright People who fail to pay their tax bill will find the money taken directly from their bank accounts under new powers to be given to HMRC at the budget In an attempt to recover up to £4bn of small unpaid debt John Healey, the chancellor, will announce that HMRC will have the authority to automatically deduct money from current and savings accounts when they fail to engage with the taxman It is the latest move to close Britain’s £60bn tax gap — the difference between the amount of tax that should in theory be paid to HMRC and the amount that is collected At present HMRC has limited powers to take money directly from taxpayers without their consent The tax authorities can only take money from bank accounts if it would leave someone with at least £5,000 remaining after the debt had been recovered and if the debt owed is more than £1,000 But ministers are concerned that the high threshold means a significant number of taxpayers are deliberately ignoring HMRC demands for money in the knowledge that the taxman is unlikely to come after them Under the new rules HMRC will be given powers to automatically deduct instalment payments from people with lower-value debts who persistently do not engage with the taxman. The threshold for debt recovery will be lowered to as little as a few pounds and the deductions could also include repaying fines and interest thetimes.com/uk/politics/art…