Partner Paul Brown, who trained as a tax inspector at HMRC before moving into practice, has been appointed head of the new tax compliance team. He will continue in his other role as Hurst’s head of international tax.

Brown said: ‘The compliance landscape is changing, with a greater focus by the government and HMRC.

‘HMRC is becoming more active, is getting access to increasingly large amounts of data about companies’ tax affairs, and is becoming more sophisticated in how this is used.

‘Making Tax Digital will be part of this process, with a greater focus on real-time reporting for tax purposes.

‘We want to ensure we have the most robust offering possible to minimise the compliance risk to our clients.’

Brown said there was evidence of a new and more aggressive approach from HMRC, which is stepping up inquiries into all aspects of tax affairs and requesting more detail, with inspectors making unannounced visits.

‘As HMRC’s approach changes, we need to respond by anticipating their next move and educating our clients so they understand what is going to be required of them and can make the necessary adjustments to their processes to meet their new obligations,’ he said.