Reduced helpline may result in long queues for taxpayers, says Treasury Committee

After HMRC announced the latest changes to the self-assessment helpline the Treasury Committee wrote to HMRC chief executive Jim Harra with a series of questions.

The committee has now received a response from Mr Harra. On the committee’s question about whether the new restrictions to the helpline are due to the arrival of pent-up demand from the closure of the helpline in the summer Mr Harra said there was no evidence of sustained pent-up demand from the seasonal trial although ‘there was a brief initial increase in contact to the helpline when it re-opened’. He said contact has since reduced back to last year’s numbers and is ‘currently at expected levels’.

On why taxpayers were given less than two working days’ notice of the latest changes Mr Harra said: ‘We engaged with stakeholders in advance of the announced changes...