Would you work for HMRC?
You have to love the month of May, the promise of summer is on the way there are two bank holiday Mondays to look forward to along with Accountex.
Accountex, the annual exhibition at the Excel in London aimed as you may have guessed at Accountants, Bookkeepers and Tax Advisors. The exhibition starts on Wednesday 15th May and lasts for two days (Thursday 16th May) although at the time of writing it is my intention only to go for one day, with that said there are so many speakers to hear I may have to make a return visit on Thursday to look around the stands to both meet up with current suppliers and to chat with new and interesting product providers.
The entire team are attending this year, and it’s a great opportunity for us all to expand our knowledge and discover new ideas and technologies that I hope we will be able to implement quickly in order to provide a cutting-edge service.
Look out for updates on my LinkedIn page, and of coarse there will be a full round up in next week’s newsletter.
As you might have guessed if you are attempting to contact me or the team this week, the phone might ring out and you may get an out of office notification, although it may just be worth it as we may learning something that can help you.
I knew did you?
As many of you know I worked for the Inland Revenue back in the 1990s before it changed its name to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) and left in 1997 to work for a local independent accountancy practice. At the time there was a tax inspector’s’ office in every town, and you could drop in and speak to someone from the department if you had an issue (if only you could do that now). Over recent years the offices have been closed and the operation has become more centralised which in my opinion is no good thing.
I remember at the time friends and acquaintances being under the impression that if you worked for the “Tax Man” then you did not have to pay taxes and that you were on a high salary as it was considered by some (not everyone) an undesirable job.
Unfortunately, I can confirm this was never the case my low salary was always taxed, there was little opportunity to progress as you were waiting to fill “dead men’s shoes”, that is until redundancies were on the cards and some of the best knowledge left either for early retirement or a career on the other side of the fence.
I would like to say I was offered redundancy and a nice big check to leave, however, that was never the case after five years of being a civil servant (that’s always how you describe your job when you work for the tax office) it was time to look for a new opportunity taking with me all my knowledge and expertise. I suppose a younger and naïve me would have hoped that the situation would change and get better for those left behind. As you may have guessed more and more people I knew left and in the early 2000s they eventually closed the office. I always remember bumping into an old colleague who had stayed until the end and with over 30 years of tax knowledge they told me that they had been transferred to the Ministry of Defence, which obviously meant they were not using their tax knowledge.
Any way where am going with this, in a recent Treasury Committee hearing it became evident that in over thirty years nothing much has changed and a fundamental issue, namely salaries is still causing a long term problem.
About a third of HMRC employees have received an unexpected pay boost in April to ensure compliance with the minimum wage, according to Jim Harra, HMRC's chief executive. This adjustment aimed to lift them above the National Living Wage threshold, now standing at £11.44 per hour since April 1st.
Harra, addressing MPs on the Treasury Committee, emphasised that this increase in wages, affecting helpline advisers and postal staff among others, reflects a reality that challenges any notion of universally high salaries within the department. He stressed his discomfort with the situation, countering any assumption that HMRC offers generous compensation packages.
Notably, the government's National Living Wage falls nearly 5% short of what the Living Wage Foundation deems necessary for meeting basic living expenses. This stark contrast prompted Fran Heathcote, the general secretary of the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS), to condemn the situation as scandalous. Heathcote argues that the workers responsible for the financial backbone of public services deserve better.
In response to the looming strike vote over pay and conditions, Heathcote emphasises the necessity for PCS members to voice their dissatisfaction. The union sees this vote as an opportunity to send a resounding message that such low wages are unacceptable.
I expect as in my day, HMRC staff still leave in the pursuit of higher salaries and a more structured if not guaranteed career path in tax and accountancy firms. Maybe, if the workforce was remunerated, and trained to a higher level then they would stay which in my opinion would not only provide a reliable service to taxpayers, but also eventually reap the rewards of reducing the tax gap. As a tax advisor, I am only too aware of the so-called low-hanging fruit that is missed, but maybe that’s why I am on this side of the fence.
There is always talk of investing in HMRC, especially around election time, and with a reported £200M being invested over the next three years into digital services which will create less reliance on paper and phone calls it feels once again that those under trained lowly paid employees will be left forgotten and undervalued.
Nothing seems to have changed, or at least it doesn’t appear to have since I left, isn’t it time? I would love to hear your thoughts, as this issue affects us all, although If I don’t answer straight away it’s possibly due to me being on hold with HMRC for over an hour while they track down a letter, they believe they sent me that never arrived.
I hope you have enjoyed this edition of my newsletter, and found it both enjoyable and informative, if you have any suggestions or comments then please let me know it is always good to hear from you. In addition to the newsletter, I am also updating the website, so please take a look from time to time to see what is happening.
If I or the Tax Matters team can be of any assistance to you, your family or your friends then please do not hesitate to contact me at 01442 828006 or jreeves@taxmatters.tax