Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to comments by a senior HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) official to The Times, quoted in an article of 2 November 2012, what discussions Ministers of his Department had with HMRC officials on whether to pursue a selective prosecution policy on tax cases relating to HSBC in Switzerland.

The information sought was provided by Edward Troup in oral evidence to the Committee of Public Accounts on 28 October 2013, HC666, from Question 328 onwards.

It is a long standing principle that Ministers are not involved in individual cases. HM Revenue and Customs’ (HMRC) approach to prosecution has not changed since it was set out by the then Chancellor of the Exchequer in 2002 – (Official Report, 7 November 2002; Vol. 392, c. 784W.).