Permanently check out of business record-keeping scheme
Taxman should find a better use of its 120 Business Record Checks staff, says Kevin Reed
Taxman should find a better use of its 120 Business Record Checks staff, says Kevin Reed
SO THE Business Record Checks scheme has been put on hold, until at least the start of the 2012/2013 tax year.
The pilot scheme was borne of a consultation sneaked out at Christmas 2010 – for an end of February deadline – only for the record checking of thousands of SMEs to begin before the next step of the consultation was concluded. Of course, responses were universally hostile, warning of a lack of planning and an unfocused, costly approach to achieving more accurate tax returns.
It was definitely more old-school HMRC than that of a patient taxman taking time to listen to and understand views – which in fairness has been more of the case in recent years than the past.
Some have suggested that political capital has been invested in this scheme. Personally I think that “investment” should be written off – and has run counter to the coalition’s rhetoric of easing red tape.
So if the scheme ends up taking a more “educational” slant than it has so far – as has been suggested – then good.
But I’d imagine advisors would rather have educational investment aimed at HMRC staff, than anywhere else.
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