30 April 2019
HMRC has announced that it will provide email, or another form of secure digital channel, for members of the public to contact the Adjudicator’s Office with any complaints by this Autumn at the latest
The Adjudicator’s Office (AO) provides an independent review of complaints about HMRC and the Valuation Office Agency (VOA). Members of the public can escalate their complaint about HMRC and the VOA to the AO to get an impartial hearing.
Yet at present, despite the Government’s ambition to make public-facing services ‘digital by default’, the only methods of contacting the AO are by post, telephone or fax.
Rt Hon. Nicky Morgan MP, Chair of the Treasury Committee, wrote to HMRC earlier this month to express the Committee’s astonishment that the public are unable to contact the AO by email.
In its response, HMRC has announced that it will provide email, or another form of secure digital channel, for members of the public to contact the AO by this Autumn at the latest.
Commenting on the news, Mrs Morgan said:
“The AO plays a valuable role in resolving complaints against HMRC, yet many people are unaware of its existence. And of those people who are aware, it can be a struggle for them to get in touch with the AO. As the Adjudicator told the Committee, the lack of digital access to the AO’s service is not defendable.
Public-facing services simply have to be digitally accessible these days.
Whilst it is astonishing in this day and age to say this, HMRC’s long-overdue commitment to provide a digital channel for the public to contact the AO is welcome.”
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Consultation on Amending HMRC’s Civil Information Powers 17 July 2018
A consultation has been published which reviews a number of aspects of HMRC’s information powers. Its aim is to ensure they have remained effective and efficient in the ten years since they were enacted.
It is now over a decade since the current framework of information provisions was enacted following the Review of Powers. Many of these powers mirror provisions that date back to the 1970s. This consultation is an opportunity to review aspects of these provisions, to ensure they remain appropriate, enable HMRC to carry out its functions efficiently and effectively, and also to consider whether the relevant safeguards remain proportionate. There are a number of anomalies in the current rules which could be addressed.
Since the 1970s digitalisation has led to significant changes in the way businesses work. These changes include:
• The UK has seen a continuing decline in the use of cash resulting in many more payments being handled electronically. • Securities trading has become almost entirely electronic. • The use of paper bank statements is starting to decline. • Traditional banks and building societies are seeing new competition from start-up “banks” which often have no physical branches. • New International agreements to facilitate the exchange of bank data between countries. These changes, as well as many others, have resulted in much more information being held electronically. Financial records in particular can now be shared with greater ease than ever before as the financial system becomes ever more flexible. It is important that HMRC regularly reviews its processes to ensure they are keeping pace with such a rapidly changing world.
The Chartered Institute of Payroll Professionals
Payroll: need to know
cipp.org.uk
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