The “whole world” wants the UK to avoid a no-deal Brexit, Japan’s PM Shinzo Abe has claimed, pledging “total support” for the withdrawal agreement Theresa May has negotiated with the EU, which faces a crunch vote in the Commons on Tuesday.

A no-deal Brexit would have profound economic consequences with GDP shrinking by up to 8%, putting thousands of jobs at risk, the Confederation of British Industry is to warn.

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HMRC is cracking down on tax avoidance by multinational companies, it believes are wrongly diverting UK profits to overseas subsidiaries, where they are taxed at lower rates or not at all, despite the introduction in 2015 of a ‘diverted profits tax.’

Meanwhile, the European commission has opened an investigation into the tax treatment of Nike in the Netherlands, saying it may have given the US sportswear maker an illegal advantage.