Thirteen hundred doctors and dentists are being investigated by the tax authorities amid suspicions that they are guilty of tax evasion. New figures show that £13.1 million has been clawed back from more than 2,000 medical staff since Revenue & Customs (HMRC) began investigating. One doctor has paid back more than £1 million, while one dentist has repaid more than £300,000. But information seen by The Times shows that inquiries are set to continue in 1,300 cases. A spokesman for HMRC confirmed that “civil investigations” were underway based on intelligence collected by tax officials. Of the money that has already been collected, some was from medical staff who came forward voluntarily, but it is understood that criminal investigations are being considered in 700 cases involving £3.1 million. An HMRC document shows that “criminal investigations are currently under consideration”. Danny Alexander, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, criticised the findings on the day an estimated 11,500 doctors took industrial action over pension reforms. “I think the public would be as dismayed to hear some doctors are evading tax as they were to learn they had appointments cancelled yesterday because doctors don’t think a £43,000-a-year pension is enough,” Mr Alexander said. In a series of articles this week The Times has revealed details of a number of schemes which in some cases enable investors to avoid tax. The 700

Private industry, including foreign firms, will be allowed to run the multibillion-pound organisation that buys and maintains Britain’s warships, helicopters and all military kit under a plan set to be approved by the Ministry of Defence today. Bernard Gray, the official in charge of the MoD’s procurement arm, will deliver his final recommendation at a meeting of top brass on how to reform Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S), which has long been criticised for failing to complete projects on time and on budget. Expectations are growing that the MoD’s governing body, the defence board, will give the first clear signal that they agree with Mr Gray’s plan to turn DE&S into a so-called Government Owned, Contractor Operated (GOCO) entity — a world first for the highly sensitive procurement branch of a country’s Armed Forces. “Most opinion former

Germany wants to propel Europe towards greater political union and has started to discuss with other EU states the prospect of creating a European finance minister, a beefed up European border police force and a European army. Britain, it seems, is not part of the conversation. Guido Westerwelle, the German Foreign Minister, told The Times that he was not making demands but rather putting ideas on the table to boost international confidence in the future of Europe. “The discussion about the future of the EU has to begin,” he said. “One of the consequences of the situation is that we have to accelerate integration in Europe. No investor in the world will invest in Europe if he doesn’t have the feeling that Europe believes in itself and is working on its future.” Mr Westerwelle was speaking after the latest meeting of the so-called Future of Europe group, w