My thanks to a loyal reader who sent me this extract of a message posted by the Grand Dame Leslie Strathie, on the intranet to staff of HMRC, re a recent Daily Mail article about HMRC:
"You may have seen that HMRC has received critical coverage from a national newspaper this morning.
I know how frustrating it is when our work comes under the spotlight in this way and appreciate how unsettling it is.
There is very little new material in the Daily Mail’s coverage, which mainly focuses on PAYE. It doesn’t include the formal response given to them by our Press Office, which is unacceptable and something we are raising with them.
I want to stress that all of us on ExCom appreciate your commitment and dedication. This is something we see whenever we get out and about and visit colleagues.
We understand the frustrations reports like this cause but want you to know how much we appreciate the good work you do, day in and day out – much of which receives no coverage at all. "
I would agree with her that much of the good work (eg stuff that doesn't go wrong, staff who are prepared to help the taxpayer even if it means circumnavigating absurd "Toyota" procedures etc) does not get publicity/appreciated.
However, that criticism is not just applicable to media coverage but also to how Excom and line managers treat the front line staff as well.
Or am I totally wrong, are staff fully appreciated by HMRC management?
Tax does have to be taxing.
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I have it on good authority she is talking a load of bollocks.
ReplyDeleteI want to stress that all of us on ExCom appreciate your commitment and dedication. This is something we see whenever we get out and about and visit colleagues.
ReplyDeleteAnd in return we would just like to remind you that if you are off sick for a couple of days your job is on the line, if you are 2 seconds late back from your tea break we will discipline you, if you spend too much time helping a tax payer correcting a problem we probably caused we will discipline you and if none of the above covers it we will look until we find another reason to threaten you.
"I want to stress that all of us on ExCom appreciate your commitment and dedication. This is something we see whenever we get out and about and visit colleagues".
ReplyDeleteAnd hopefully very soon, we will be seeing a hell of a lot less of you when we are out and about on our visits, (er or should I say inspections, making sure there is more shit for staff and taxpayer alike).
Hurry up taking a crap and email me those spreadsheets stats. Stop asking questions about your pension, weve lost your details.
:(
12 March 2011 10:51
ReplyDeleteI promise, I never read your comment first!
12 March 2011 11:15
"are staff fully appreciated by HMRC management?"
ReplyDeleteYes. They are a valuable resource. Unfortunately their value is depreciating but we hope to be able to replace them with cheaper more disposable models soon.
L Strathie
“It doesn’t include the formal response given to them by our Press Office, which is unacceptable and something we are raising with them”.
ReplyDeleteOh dear, she’s going to raise an issue. If HMRC press office phone, don’t answer it, or fail to reply. If they write, lose the letter. If they email, say the IT system has failed. If they fax, say theres no ink cartridge in the fax machine. Give them a little bit of their own medicine.
Everybody in HMRC write to Cameron and detail the mess the Dept is in and request that Strathe, Hairnet and Clasper the Ghost be sacked without compensation and their pensions be confiscated because of incompetance and gross negligence of duty. Make sure the papers and media are fully in the loop. That might just have an effect.
ReplyDelete12 March 2011 14:11, careful you will upset them and then they will send the boys round to see you.
ReplyDeleteTotally agree with 17:22.
ReplyDeleteThe more complaints, the better. The more exposure of the incompetence, bullying and wrongs, the more pressure on The Chancellor to act and change it.
HMRC are the enemies of enterprise.
Hmrc is shite, the service is shite, they treat their staff worse than shite & the people at EXCOM are the biggest pile of steaming shite that you could imagine.
ReplyDeleteIm sick of waiting for strike action to be taken so i can atleast have a break from the incessant shite which they are full of.
@ 18:22
ReplyDeleteI agree, but it doesn't stop there. HMRC's putrid stench is now festering across the entire population. Every household and business has to endure the cancerous disease-ridden HMRC shite as well.
No matter who takes over from the massively incompetent management, it's gonna be a monumental shit-shovelling exercise. Chances are, they'll just shovel shit backwards and forwards for years to come, so staff will only get respite for short periods of time. Wankers.
Buy one of those fake plastic Turds and leave on the managers chair or table.
ReplyDeleteIn fact instead of the HMRC Crown logo, it should be a Toilet inside the circle.
They should have a brown flag fluttering outside every building.
Strathie is planning to replace all office chairs with toilets for staff in the interests of productivity. Why else would she be kissing your butts?
ReplyDelete"Everybody in HMRC write to Cameron"?
ReplyDelete"HMRC are the enemies of enterprise." Cameron?
Bullshit. Cameron will make a bigger balls of hmrc than Brown did. Hes a big a bureaucrat as any senior HMRC manager in Whitehall.
Cameron said "taking on… the bureaucrats in government departments who concoct those ridiculous rules and regulations that make life impossible for small firms".
Hes full of shit becuase the civil servants dont concoct the rules, Parliament does and its highly unlikely David gives two shits about low paid junior HMRC staff.
I spoke a senior member of the PCS union recently and they stated that they cannot deal with bullying and harassment as a collective and each case has to be dealt with individually.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I felt that this line was just a cop out it does mean the staff are buggered.
Although I hate to say it, the quicker the department completely fails the better all round.
13 March 2011 23:57
ReplyDeleteGood point, but no matter how bad it gets it will just drag on. Tax has to be collected. You cant close down, or even change hmrc that much.
Cameron and Osborne have no interest in improving the situation, that Brown and others created.
The no1 priority is to shrink the department, not improve morale, or develop efficency.
Cameron has simply blamed the civil service lock, stock and barrel for this whole fiasco. Him and Osborne probably dont undertand how the civil service wokrs. They just stand on the sidelines with big private business and throw abuse.
According to the Mail article, a portfolio of evidence has been sent to Gauke, HMRC's minister.
ReplyDeleteWhat is surprising is that HMRC doesn't have a senior minister answerable to the floor of the commons directly. In the end Osborne is responsible, but Gauke makes a handy scapegoat.
The intention of the cuts at HMRC is blindingly obvious - to put tax collection into the hands of private companies who will promise they can do better, but fail dismally at three times the cost. Only Enforcement will receive extra money £900,000,000. If you are expecting this to be spent on training officers, forget it. It will go to PFI contracts. HMRC are recruiting (internally)for 200 extra investigators (though not proper, fully trained ones) in order to get 1000 extra convictions. Not of major tax evaders or cigarette smugglers, but 'volume crime' (e.g. filling in a form wrong so you can be prosecuted.)
Its a pity we can't speak up, but we have kids to feed and bills to pay, too.
"Its a pity we can't speak up, but we have kids to feed and bills to pay, too."
ReplyDeleteThis is the catch 22 bit, if you cannot speak up then no one can support you.
I agree with 09:37
ReplyDeleteCameron and Osborne want to privatise the whole thing on the basis that everyone involved is to blame and the civil service can't be trusted, even though Parliament makes the rules and Brown created the merger.
Its a win win for the Spivs. Private business gets millions, thousands lose their jobs and even better their pensions.
Whatever happened to all those Private Sector pensions?
Where did that money go? Oh well.
Strathie is being quite nice with her words. She must of had a good seeing to recently - maybe by Dave?
ReplyDelete14 March 2011 16:48
ReplyDeleteStrathie is being quite nice with her words. She must of had a good seeing to recently - maybe by Dave?
Good GOD no !!!
This picture has produced such horrible thoughts in my head that I may have to go sick forever and a day
14 March 2011 19:43
ReplyDeleteSorry, the thought popped into my head and I just had to share it.