Hi Dave Hartnett

Congratulations, this month my tax investigation is three years old!

Yes, I made a few mistakes with my returns, but the basics of the case are that I didn’t pay much tax because I didn’t earn much money – some years it was below the tax threshold!

My low earnings have been obvious for quite some time.

Why has it gone on for so long? Well HMRC would blame me for any delay (what with all that tedious complaining) but ultimately HMRC has been the one running the investigation so HMRC has to take responsibility. I think the Investigating Officer just felt that if she could dig for long enough she would eventually strike gold – she was wrong.

My case is an important one because it highlights what is in need of reform at HMRC, showing poor communication, little accountability, investigators who just won’t let go because they are afraid of a ‘nil’ result and the running of the Tax Service like an organisation with a bottomless pit of funding. And crucially it shows the poor treatment of tax payers who are not represented they – no surprise here – are the poorest and most vulnerable.

As time passes commercial pressures will force HMRC to be more responsible and practical about investigations such as mine.

If you want to see just how bad cases are run I suggest you start by having a look at the schedule here (nice pic of you Dave) and then go to the main site here to see the horrible truth about how HMRC runs a small ‘segment’ enquiry.

No consultancy fee necessary – but if I could pick up £400,000 when I retire, well that would be just dandy.

Sincerely

Nick Morgan

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Nick Morgan

The Site www.tax-hell.co.uk

The Blog http://nick-wwwtax-hellcouk.blogspot.com/

The Schedule http://web.mac.com/nickmorgan/HMRC/schedule.html