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1699335

registered interest
date	27/03/2024
answering body	Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	Treasury
hansard heading	Taxation: Electronic Government
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government what consideration they gave to the Report from the Communications and Digital Committee Digital exclusion (3rd Report, Session 2022–23, HL Paper 219) when removing the postal address for HMRC from tax code notices.
tabling member printed	Lord Lipsey
uin	HL3684
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/04/2024 answer text <p>HMRC could not have considered the 2022-23 Communications and Digital Committee Report on Digital Exclusion when removing the postal address from tax code notices, as this change occurred over 5 years ago. In keeping with the HMRC Charter principles, the Department aims to balance digital initiatives with accessibility for those facing digital exclusion.</p> answering member printed Baroness Vere of Norbiton question first answered 08/04/2024 14:17:31 answering member 4580 label Biography information for Baroness Vere of Norbiton
tabling member	2492 label Biography information for Lord Lipsey

1694337

registered interest
date	06/03/2024
answering body	Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	Treasury
hansard heading	Taxation: Electronic Government
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask His Majesty's Government why they do not include a postal address option on tax code notices to enable digitally excluded people to contact HMRC more easily.
tabling member printed	Lord Lipsey
uin	HL3072
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/03/2024 answer text <p>HMRC removed postal address from notices to encourage customers to use their digital services and interact with them online through their Personal Tax Account. Customers can submit queries electronically via HMRC’s iForm, which is handled by a dedicated team similar post correspondence.</p><p>For those unable to engage online, HMRC continues to provide support through telephone, including the Extra Support Service. This service is for customers who cannot contact HMRC due to health or personal issues. They can request phone, video, or in-person appointments when calling the helplines, and HMRC’s advisers will assess their circumstances to offer the best option for them.</p><p>More information can be found on the Extra Support Service at:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/get-help-hmrc-extra-support" target="_blank">Get help from HMRC if you need extra support: Help you can get - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)</a></p> answering member printed Baroness Vere of Norbiton question first answered 13/03/2024 12:04:58 answering member 4580 label Biography information for Baroness Vere of Norbiton
tabling member	2492 label Biography information for Lord Lipsey

1360915

registered interest
date	18/10/2021
answering body	Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	Treasury
hansard heading	Taxation: Electronic Government
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that software providers for businesses participating in the Making Tax Digital programme do not pursue unfair profit-seeking behaviour.
tabling member printed	Lord Taylor of Warwick
uin	HL3187
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/11/2021 answer text <p>HMRC works closely with the software industry to ensure that businesses have access to products that suit their budgets and needs.</p><p>The introduction of Making Tax Digital (MTD) for VAT has resulted in a competitive software market. Many businesses that were already using subscription-based accounting software before MTD saw their products upgraded for MTD compatibility for free. Several free and low-cost software products are available.</p><p>HMRC expects a similarly competitive market for MTD for Income Tax Self Assessment. The government remains committed to working with software suppliers to ensure there are free MTD for Income Tax Self Assessment software products for businesses with straightforward tax affairs.</p> answering member printed Lord Agnew of Oulton question first answered 01/11/2021 17:14:07 answering member 4689 label Biography information for Lord Agnew of Oulton
tabling member	1796 label Biography information for Lord Taylor of Warwick

1328024

registered interest
date	25/05/2021
answering body	Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	Treasury
hansard heading	Taxation: Electronic Government
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to increase awareness of the impact of 'Making Tax Digital' on tax.
tabling member printed	Lord Taylor of Warwick
uin	HL589
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 08/06/2021 answer text <p>The Government is committed to ensuring that businesses within scope of Making Tax Digital (MTD) understand the impact it will have on their business. All taxpayers within scope of MTD will receive direct contact from HMRC in advance of mandation outlining the changes and explaining how to comply.</p><p> </p><p>HMRC engage extensively with taxpayers, agents, and representative bodies to raise awareness of MTD through stakeholder forums, public events, webinars, social media, and publishing information and guidance on GOV.UK.</p><p> </p><p>MTD does not change the amount of tax a business has to pay, but rather when and how it reports tax information to HMRC. Two independent research studies commissioned by HMRC have found that small businesses that had joined MTD for VAT with fully integrated software reported spending less time on their tax and making fewer errors.</p> answering member printed Lord Agnew of Oulton question first answered 08/06/2021 11:42:39 answering member 4689 label Biography information for Lord Agnew of Oulton
tabling member	1796 label Biography information for Lord Taylor of Warwick

1228019

registered interest
date	27/07/2020
answering body	Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	Treasury
hansard heading	Taxation: Electronic Government
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the Making Tax Digital programme on the productivity of the self-employed.
tabling member printed	Lord West of Spithead
uin	HL7410
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 10/08/2020 answer text <p>The Government expects the Making Tax Digital programme to have a positive impact on the productivity of self-employed businesses, as set out in the Financial Secretary to the Treasury’s written ministerial statement on 21 July (HCWS400) and HMRC and HM Treasury’s publication “Building a trusted, modern tax administration” of the same date.</p><p>About 1.4 million businesses, some of whom are self-employed, have already joined Making Tax Digital (MTD) for their VAT affairs and many of these are already experiencing productivity gains associated with more digital ways of working, as set out in HMRC’s Evaluation of the MTD for VAT service published in March.</p><p> </p><p>The Enterprise Research Centre (2018) found that for micro-businesses, web-based accounting software delivered productivity increases of over 10%.</p> answering member printed Lord Agnew of Oulton question first answered 10/08/2020 14:30:03 answering member 4689 label Biography information for Lord Agnew of Oulton
tabling member	3834 label Biography information for Lord West of Spithead

1227865

registered interest
date	23/07/2020
answering body	Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	Treasury
hansard heading	Taxation: Electronic Government
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what measures they have in place for anyone (1) without access to computers, and (2) who is not online, when the Making Tax Digital programme comes into operation
tabling member printed	Lord West of Spithead
uin	HL7263
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/07/2020 answer text <p>The Government understands that some people with disabilities, those in rural locations with poor broadband services, and those who are digitally excluded for other reasons may find it more difficult to comply with Making Tax Digital (MTD) requirements. MTD exemptions have operated successfully since the introduction of MTD for VAT in April 2019 for businesses with taxable turnover in excess of the VAT threshold. These exemptions will continue to be available to businesses within the expanded scope of MTD.</p><p> </p><p>There will be no specific allowances or payment made to those using MTD for time spent complying with MTD requirements. However, the Government accepts that there will be time spent in familiarisation with the new MTD obligations (digital record keeping and quarterly submission of information). The Lloyds Bank UK Consumer Digital Index 2019 found that those who are the most digitally engaged save a day a week in administration by going digital. Once businesses are used to operating the new MTD processes, the Government anticipates that they will find that MTD makes it easier for them to get things right, reducing errors and saving time in administering their tax affairs.</p><p> </p><p>MTD is not a response to any changes in HMRC workforce. It is a key part of the Government’s long term goal for HMRC to become one of the most digitally advanced tax authorities in the world, and forms part of the Government's 10-year strategy to build a trusted, modern tax administration system. As well as helping to tackle the part of the tax gap arising due to error and failure to take reasonable care, MTD will help to make the tax administration system more resilient and effective in responding to future shocks, while also providing businesses with access to real-time data and a more accurate overview of their financial position.</p><p> </p><p>The Government will not be funding specialist software or training, but will continue to work to ensure that any additional costs to business are minimised. Free Income Tax software will be available for businesses with the simplest tax affairs. For VAT, there are already over a dozen free packages available as part of a highly competitive market with over 500 products for different business needs. On training, the HMRC customer support model includes a multi-layered approach stretching across agents, third party software support, through to telephony support, webchat, and HMRC’s Extra Support service, as well as signposting to information and guides and to local or third party providers of digital skills courses or support already offered by external providers.</p><p> </p><p>For those with slow speeds and no access to other commercial alternatives, the broadband Universal Service Obligation (USO) came into force in March 2020. The USO gives people in the UK the right to request a decent and affordable broadband connection. The Government has pledged £5 billion to support the rollout of gigabit-capable networks to the hardest to reach 20% of the country.</p> answering member printed Lord Agnew of Oulton grouped question UIN HL7264 HL7265 HL7266 HL7267 question first answered 30/07/2020 12:13:24 answering member 4689 label Biography information for Lord Agnew of Oulton
tabling member	3834 label Biography information for Lord West of Spithead

1227867

registered interest
date	23/07/2020
answering body	Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	Treasury
hansard heading	Taxation: Electronic Government
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the Making Tax Digital programme has been introduced due to reductions in the HMRC workforce.
tabling member printed	Lord West of Spithead
uin	HL7265
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/07/2020 answer text <p>The Government understands that some people with disabilities, those in rural locations with poor broadband services, and those who are digitally excluded for other reasons may find it more difficult to comply with Making Tax Digital (MTD) requirements. MTD exemptions have operated successfully since the introduction of MTD for VAT in April 2019 for businesses with taxable turnover in excess of the VAT threshold. These exemptions will continue to be available to businesses within the expanded scope of MTD.</p><p> </p><p>There will be no specific allowances or payment made to those using MTD for time spent complying with MTD requirements. However, the Government accepts that there will be time spent in familiarisation with the new MTD obligations (digital record keeping and quarterly submission of information). The Lloyds Bank UK Consumer Digital Index 2019 found that those who are the most digitally engaged save a day a week in administration by going digital. Once businesses are used to operating the new MTD processes, the Government anticipates that they will find that MTD makes it easier for them to get things right, reducing errors and saving time in administering their tax affairs.</p><p> </p><p>MTD is not a response to any changes in HMRC workforce. It is a key part of the Government’s long term goal for HMRC to become one of the most digitally advanced tax authorities in the world, and forms part of the Government's 10-year strategy to build a trusted, modern tax administration system. As well as helping to tackle the part of the tax gap arising due to error and failure to take reasonable care, MTD will help to make the tax administration system more resilient and effective in responding to future shocks, while also providing businesses with access to real-time data and a more accurate overview of their financial position.</p><p> </p><p>The Government will not be funding specialist software or training, but will continue to work to ensure that any additional costs to business are minimised. Free Income Tax software will be available for businesses with the simplest tax affairs. For VAT, there are already over a dozen free packages available as part of a highly competitive market with over 500 products for different business needs. On training, the HMRC customer support model includes a multi-layered approach stretching across agents, third party software support, through to telephony support, webchat, and HMRC’s Extra Support service, as well as signposting to information and guides and to local or third party providers of digital skills courses or support already offered by external providers.</p><p> </p><p>For those with slow speeds and no access to other commercial alternatives, the broadband Universal Service Obligation (USO) came into force in March 2020. The USO gives people in the UK the right to request a decent and affordable broadband connection. The Government has pledged £5 billion to support the rollout of gigabit-capable networks to the hardest to reach 20% of the country.</p> answering member printed Lord Agnew of Oulton grouped question UIN HL7263 HL7264 HL7266 HL7267 question first answered 30/07/2020 12:13:24 answering member 4689 label Biography information for Lord Agnew of Oulton
tabling member	3834 label Biography information for Lord West of Spithead

1227869

registered interest
date	23/07/2020
answering body	Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	Treasury
hansard heading	Taxation: Electronic Government
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to fund appropriate standards of broadband connection for those who live in areas with poor broadband connectivity to ensure that they can participate in the Making Tax Digital programme.
tabling member printed	Lord West of Spithead
uin	HL7267
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 30/07/2020 answer text <p>The Government understands that some people with disabilities, those in rural locations with poor broadband services, and those who are digitally excluded for other reasons may find it more difficult to comply with Making Tax Digital (MTD) requirements. MTD exemptions have operated successfully since the introduction of MTD for VAT in April 2019 for businesses with taxable turnover in excess of the VAT threshold. These exemptions will continue to be available to businesses within the expanded scope of MTD.</p><p> </p><p>There will be no specific allowances or payment made to those using MTD for time spent complying with MTD requirements. However, the Government accepts that there will be time spent in familiarisation with the new MTD obligations (digital record keeping and quarterly submission of information). The Lloyds Bank UK Consumer Digital Index 2019 found that those who are the most digitally engaged save a day a week in administration by going digital. Once businesses are used to operating the new MTD processes, the Government anticipates that they will find that MTD makes it easier for them to get things right, reducing errors and saving time in administering their tax affairs.</p><p> </p><p>MTD is not a response to any changes in HMRC workforce. It is a key part of the Government’s long term goal for HMRC to become one of the most digitally advanced tax authorities in the world, and forms part of the Government's 10-year strategy to build a trusted, modern tax administration system. As well as helping to tackle the part of the tax gap arising due to error and failure to take reasonable care, MTD will help to make the tax administration system more resilient and effective in responding to future shocks, while also providing businesses with access to real-time data and a more accurate overview of their financial position.</p><p> </p><p>The Government will not be funding specialist software or training, but will continue to work to ensure that any additional costs to business are minimised. Free Income Tax software will be available for businesses with the simplest tax affairs. For VAT, there are already over a dozen free packages available as part of a highly competitive market with over 500 products for different business needs. On training, the HMRC customer support model includes a multi-layered approach stretching across agents, third party software support, through to telephony support, webchat, and HMRC’s Extra Support service, as well as signposting to information and guides and to local or third party providers of digital skills courses or support already offered by external providers.</p><p> </p><p>For those with slow speeds and no access to other commercial alternatives, the broadband Universal Service Obligation (USO) came into force in March 2020. The USO gives people in the UK the right to request a decent and affordable broadband connection. The Government has pledged £5 billion to support the rollout of gigabit-capable networks to the hardest to reach 20% of the country.</p> answering member printed Lord Agnew of Oulton grouped question UIN HL7263 HL7264 HL7265 HL7266 question first answered 30/07/2020 12:13:23 answering member 4689 label Biography information for Lord Agnew of Oulton
tabling member	3834 label Biography information for Lord West of Spithead

1142431

registered interest
date	25/07/2019
answering body	Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	Treasury
hansard heading	Taxation: Electronic Government
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to continue with the rollout of their Simple Assessment and dynamic coding projects, which were paused in May 2018.
tabling member printed	Baroness Altmann
uin	HL17505
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 06/08/2019 answer text <p>HM Revenue &amp; Customs (HMRC) delivered Simple Assessment to a small number of customers in 2017. Due to the need to prioritise EU exit, HMRC temporarily suspended further work to extend the service to a larger number of customers. The service remains active for the original user base, and further enhancements are being made this financial year. HMRC are reviewing whether to make further investments into the service in the context of the Spending Review.</p><p> </p><p>HMRC have long had a delivery plan for the dynamic coding-out of debt project. The service was successfully introduced for a number of taxation scenarios that cause an over- or under-payment of PAYE.</p><p> </p><p>After the closure of the Making Tax Digital for Individuals Programme, which included a wider dynamic coding option, and resource reallocation to EU exit, a new IT solution was required for this Budget 2017 project. HMRC remain committed to delivering this project. Further work on the wider dynamic coding activities will be considered as part of wider Spending Review planning.</p> answering member printed Lord Young of Cookham question first answered 06/08/2019 14:08:44 answering member 57 label Biography information for Lord Young of Cookham
tabling member	4533 label Biography information for Baroness Altmann

1139051

registered interest
date	15/07/2019
answering body	Treasury
answering dept id	14
answering dept short name	Treasury
answering dept sort name	Treasury
hansard heading	Taxation: Electronic Government
house id	2
legislature	25277 pref label House of Lords
question text	To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to review the Making Tax Digital service and improve the current (1) process of, and (2) software used by, that service.
tabling member printed	Lord Colgrain
uin	HL17136
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 23/07/2019 answer text <p>HMRC are constantly reviewing the progress of the Making Tax Digital (MTD) service. As at 18 July, over 712,000 businesses have joined the VAT service and over 460,000 VAT submissions have been made successfully.</p><p> </p><p>The VAT Helpline has been performing within the 5 minute target for average waiting time. A small proportion of customers – around 0.5% - have been affected by service issues which HMRC are addressing.</p><p> </p><p>The Government recognises the value of independent assurance. MTD is part of the Government’s Major Projects Portfolio and the VAT service will be reviewed by the Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA) in September.</p><p> </p><p>Software enabling customers to use MTD is provided by a wide range of third-party software providers. This approach has led to a rich choice of products to meet businesses’ different needs, preferences and budgets.</p><p> </p> answering member printed Lord Young of Cookham question first answered 23/07/2019 16:19:11 answering member 57 label Biography information for Lord Young of Cookham
tabling member	4596 label Biography information for Lord Colgrain