By Mr J Andrews
16th Jan 2025 11:40
M.P.s who are privileged to have sailed through private education followed by an Oxbridge degree are to be commended for their devotion to serving the general public.
James Murray , M.P. for Ealing North was appointed Exchequer Secretary on a reported salary of up to £200K. His aim - to ensure robust dealings and commitment with HMRC in meeting the MTD timeframe.
How do you explain that to the small businesses in Ealing ? These small businesses struggling to make ends meet and equally - or more so - dedicated to offering services to their fellow Ealing residents. Do they want to be tied to more administrative time wasting for no benefit whatsoever ? Equally the Ealing sole traders, plumbers , carpenters , childminders , foster parents etc - the list of trades / professions is endless, not to mention the O.A.P.s who have put their life savings into a property rental as their retirement pension.
Come MTD day , when the proverbial #### hits the fan , I envisage the pythonesque situation of Murray and his husband opening sack loads of Royal Mail from his Ealing constituents moaning and complaining about the horrendous detraction of wasted time from their business activities and punitive costs for additional professional services in complying with filing obligations , with further complaints by those Ealing residents faced with the knock on additional costs imposed by those very businesses suffering the impact of MTD. How does Murray explain the wonderful benefits his much beloved Ealing constituents are getting from this imposition. There's probably one or two sadomasochists in the Borough who might feel relieved.
Meanwhile , as the Ealing compliant are punished , take a walk down Murray's street - or anywhere in Ealing and see how the rampant un-tackled Black Economy flourishes.
By FactChecker
16th Jan 2025 12:55
Good strategy ... take the battle to the doorstep - and make it personal for Murray (the only threats that politicians acknowledge and listen to are the ones that risk their own livelihood)!
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Rob Swan
By Rob Swan
16th Jan 2025 14:42
Well....
Maybe the last plumber in Ealing will have given up under the burden of MTD just before Murray has need of an urgent unblocking.
That'll hit home
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By AdamJones82
16th Jan 2025 12:02
Why am I reminded of the Gulf War when Chemical Ali kept being trotted out saying everything was fine.....?
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By DoubleEntryTwice
16th Jan 2025 16:42
I think you mean Comical Ali.
Chemical Ali was a different person.
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Rob Swan
By Rob Swan
16th Jan 2025 12:48
Great article Richard.
Murray's Muppetry (apologies to Jim Henson) highlighted brilliantly.
"... he’s [James Murray] going to see private sector organisations to get ideas and feed them back to HMRC."
Proof right there that HMRC don't have a clue! If they did, that would already be well established. Just saying
"Elsewhere on the MTD front, Murray emphasised how the roll out of MTD for income tax in April 2026 is a “really important foundational part of moving over to a much more digitalised system of HMRC”.
No! NO!!!! NOOOooooo......
First [Step 1]: You sort your (HMRC) systems out and get your digital systems working correctly.
Then [Step 2]: You develop MTD and interface with your 'working' back end HMRC systems.
If Murray would like a simple analogy:
First you learn to ride a bicycle; then you practice - a lot.
Then you attempt Lands End to John o' Groats.
If you claim that doing Lands End to John o' Groats is a “really important foundational part" of learning to ride a bicycle. Well.... Good luck with that!
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By FactChecker
16th Jan 2025 13:06
Has anyone else noticed that his avowed "three main priorities: closing the tax gap, modernising and reforming, and improving customer service" don't operate in a vacuum ... they require a cohesive plan that places a priority on each element + quantifies each part + shows how one is connected to another.
That would be called a Strategy - and is not the same thing as disconnected soundbites that are without semblance of quantitative or qualitative measurement.
"Full steam ahead on MTD" + "Customer service" + "Closing the tax gap" isn't the order I'd choose ... do we have any bids for an improved order of priorities?
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By Open all hours
16th Jan 2025 13:13
But don’t disconnected sound bites become true if you use them all at least three times without laughing, crying or hiding behind the lectern?
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By paulwakefield1
16th Jan 2025 17:02
Seems that improving customer service is getting the phones answered quicker but not necessarily being given the right answer. I'm sure the satisfaction ratings would be lower if Joe Public knew that the advice they received was wrong.