| Home > Tax Articles > General > Editorial: When is 'Independent' not 'Independent'? When it's HMRC! |
| Editorial: When is 'Independent' not 'Independent'? When it's HMRC! |
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Mark McLaughlin comments on HM Revenue & Customs' new Alternative Dispute Resolution Service. HMRC launched a pilot introducing the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) service earlier this month. The ADR is a new way of resolving disputes between small and medium sized enterprises and HMRC. In the News Release announcing the ADR pilot, an HMRC spokesman outlined the perceived benefits: “ADR will help SMEs resolve disputes without having to go to a tribunal – saving them both time and money. It is a good opportunity for HMRC to work together with our customers to potentially resolve disputes much earlier than at present." Sounds quite good, doesn't it? But wait a moment. The News Release points out that the ADR "...uses independent HMRC facilitators to resolve disputes between HMRC and customers during a compliance check but before a decision or assessment has been made." Hang on - how can a HMRC facilitator be 'independent' if HMRC is a party to the dispute? What 'independent' presumably means in this context is that the facilitator was not initially involved in the dispute. Not quite my idea of independent. Taxpayers hoping for a third party mediator will be disappointed. But perhaps they should not be surprised. The existing review system is 'independent' in a similar way. Cynics might suggest that HMRC is seeking to ensure that the odds are stacked in their favour. I couldn't possibly comment!
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About The Author  Mark McLaughlin is TaxationWeb's Co-Founder, Director and Technical Editor. He is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Taxation and a member of the Association of Taxation Technicians and the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners. He lectures on tax subjects, is co-author of Tottel's IHT Annual and Ray & McLaughlin's IHT Planning, and Editor of Tottel's Tax Planning and Annual series. Mark's work has also been published in Taxation, Tax Adviser, Tolley's Practical Tax, Tax Journal and Simon's Weekly Tax Intelligence. Since January 1998, Mark has been a consultant in his own tax practice, Mark McLaughlin Associates, which provides tax consultancy and support services to professional firms. He publishes a regular 'Tax Update' e-Newsletter for clients and other professional firms. To receive future copies, contact Mark via his website. |
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Article Added Sunday, 22 January 2012 | 265 Hits |
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