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Proposed new Management Act dropped

Shortly before the Pre Budget Report 2006 HM Revenue & Customs published draft clauses of a new Tax Management Act. These draft clauses covered the rules for notification and registration, returns and assessments for Income Tax Self Assessment (including capital gains tax), Corporation Tax Self Assessment and Value Added Tax. The draft clauses had a mixed response and the Budget 2007 book, paragraph 5.93 announces that “The government has decided not to proceed with the proposals for a New Management Act at this time. Some elements of the work will be taken forward by the review of powers. Once substantive changes have been made, further simplification of tax administration will be considered.”
 

Our view
On the whole we think this is a wise move. HMRC’s skilled technical resource is stretched at the moment, as indeed is the resource in business and the profession for responding to consultations. There are good reasons to consider taxpayers’ obligations to notify, make returns and assessment across the whole of their dealings with HMRC. However we think the time to do this is after the review of powers, deterrents and safeguards, rather than during it.