Add thelocalreport.in As A Trusted Source
A boss at HMRC told us member of congress He believes it is important to lead with “kindness.”
John-Paul Marks, first Permanent Secretary and Chief Executive Officer HMRCstressing the importance of treating employees and customers well.
Provide evidence to parties finance committee”, he said: “I think we are very concerned about our charter because obviously we need to operate according to our charter in accordance with the law, and that is very right too.
“There are important standards in there around fairness, keeping customer data safe. We want to adhere to that standard.”
Mr. Marks served as Permanent Secretary of the State Council Scottish Government Says: “I think it’s important to think deeply about the goals within the organization.”
He told the hearing: “So, yes, leading with kindness is something we think about a lot in Scotland. government. I think that’s important, especially in a contentious, challenging, rapidly evolving environment. Like I said, there will be bumps in the road.
“Our job is to create an environment that takes care of our customers, engages well with our partners, and takes care of our teams so that we learn from these moments and continue working to improve outcomes.”
Asked about the tax agency’s “steep curve” in closing the tax gap – the gap between expected tax revenue and actual revenue collected – and the reality of that curve, Mr Marks said: “HMRC understands we face a very difficult transformation. We’ve made a good start. I’m pleased with the progress in the first year.”
Marks said the assumptions “have been carefully stress tested.”
“The Office for Budget Responsibility will look at what they think is prudent and based on evidence and data, so they’re not just hopeful assumptions, they’re based on the data evidence that we have,” he told the hearing. “But you’re right, every year we publish progress and be transparent about where we’re at.”
Receive a free partial share worth up to £100.
Capital is at risk.
Terms and conditions apply.
advertise
Receive a free partial share worth up to £100.
Capital is at risk.
Terms and conditions apply.
advertise
“If we need to make adjustments because we’re not completely on track, we’re open to that.”
Asked whether HMRC had the capacity to deal with changes announced by the government in the Budget Bill and pensions, Mr Marks said: “We have the capacity and we work very hard to assess the feasibility of these measures as part of our advice to ministers so that we can be confident that the budget is indeed feasible. The last thing anyone wants is for that not to be the case.”
Mr Marks later added: “I do feel that we are operating in an environment where the threat environment is constantly changing and highly severe.
“There’s always the possibility that our plans will be disrupted by some kind of malicious attack that we have to deal with. But, as I said, we’re increasing our potential resiliency against those attacks, but that’s always a concern.”
Mr. Marks also said that about 80% of customer interactions are now digital.
“This time last year it was around 75%. The target is to reach 90% by 2030. So we are on the right track,” he said.
“We have no plans to close any phone lines to drive channel shifts.”
He said that by 2025, the number of unique users of the application will reach 7.3 million, an increase of 2.1 million from 2024.
Asked about support for vulnerable customers, Mr Marks said: “I think both can be improved so that people can have better digital products on their phones at a time that’s convenient for them.
“At the same time additional support is being increased and improved… we are working with around 11 voluntary sector partners across the UK to provide additional advocacy support and we are keen to provide further support as well.”
Mr Marks was also asked about child benefit checks.
In November, the committee wrote to HMRC to discuss the use of travel data to track errors and fraud in child welfare.
HMRC has conducted a review of child welfare compliance cases where PAYE checks were not carried out.
The company previously said that as of November 30, 2025, 14,994 child welfare clients had been determined to be eligible for child benefits out of 23,794 cases filed between August and October 2025.
Mr Marks told the committee the latest figures at the end of December showed the number of people eligible had risen to 17,048.
He said about 5,600 cases were still under investigation but customers had yet to respond to letters.
HM Revenue and Customs previously said it had identified more than 1,000 cases where child benefit payments had been made incorrectly.
