The UK government has broadly agreed with a number of Public Accounts Committee recommendations in its report Managing tax compliance following the pandemic which looked at how HMRC compliance activity has picked up (or otherwise) since Covid-19, when many of the department's resources were diverted to dealing with the pandemic.
Most notably, the government says that HMRC is already able to assess risks around potential non-compliance and redeploy experienced officers as necessary. HMRC is also working to better understand the deterrent effect of its criminal investigations and prosecutions (which perhaps will also be influenced by the new Stop Notice offence). Recommendations around increased resources for HMRC are rejected, partly because the government had already committed funding for extra staff and partly because, as usual, it says that funding decisions are a matter for Treasury ministers.
The UK government has broadly agreed with a number of Public Accounts Committee recommendations in its report Managing tax compliance following the pandemic which looked at how HMRC compliance activity has picked up (or otherwise) since Covid-19, when many of the department's resources were diverted to dealing with the pandemic.
Most notably, the government says that HMRC is already able to assess risks around potential non-compliance and redeploy experienced officers as necessary. HMRC is also working to better understand the deterrent effect of its criminal investigations and prosecutions (which perhaps will also be influenced by the new Stop Notice offence). Recommendations around increased resources for HMRC are rejected, partly because the government had already committed funding for extra staff and partly because, as usual, it says that funding decisions are a matter for Treasury ministers.
