Government must prioritise improving HMRC service levels

The heads of the leading UK professional bodies have signed an open letter urging chancellor of the exchequer Jeremy Hunt to prioritise investment in HMRC’s service levels in the Budget on 15 March.

The letter warns that ‘despite its critical role in funding the public sector customer service levels delivered by HMRC have fallen to an unacceptably low level’. This makes it difficult for taxpayers business owners and their agents who want to comply with their tax obligations ‘but need to be able to interact with the tax authority in a timely and efficient way’.

The letter refers to the Public Accounts Committee’s recent claims that £42bn in taxes have not been collected at a time when HMRC customer service staff numbers have been cut by 24% in the past five years. The institutes add that the delays and business disruption faced by...