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| Royal Charter being brought in by the Beadle |
Despite all the ridicule and scorn heaped upon HMRC for its decision to hold a service in Westminster Abbey on 23 September, praising HMRC, the service went ahead.
The "great and the good" of HMRC read prayers to "give thanks for the pooling of resources and their effect in the security of the realm, in the education and health of the people, in the provision of relief, and in the promotion of prosperity."
"We honour the manner and means by which taxes are collected."Pass the sick bag someone!
As per the Westminster Abbey site
23 Sep 2014
The service was conducted by the Dean of Westminster, the Very Reverend Dr John Hall, who said in his Bidding: 'The neighbours of Westminster Abbey around Parliament Square are the Palace of Westminster, the Supreme Court, and, beside Her Majesty's Treasury, Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs. It is a pleasure to welcome our neighbours to the Abbey.
'We gather to worship God and to celebrate collaboration. Our focus is not on political decisions about the proportion of people's income and expenditure deployed by Her Majesty's Government. Rather, we give thanks for the pooling of resources and their effect in the security of the realm, in the education and health of the people, in the provision of relief, and in the promotion of prosperity.
'As we recall the origins of HMRC and its current formation, we shall pray for all who are employed in public service, we shall give thanks for the goods provided by the funds raised, and we shall ask the blessing of almighty God on all that is done for the good of the people.'
Judy Clements OBE, Adjudicator, the Valuation Office Agency and the Insolvency Service, read Deuteronomy 8: 7-18 and Leslie Ferrar CVO, Non-Executive Director HMRC, read 2 Corinthians 9: 6-12.
Kay Markham, Needs Enhanced Support Adviser, Personal Tax; and Paul Brown, Director of Marketing and Communications, The Prince's Trust, gave Testimonials.
The Address was given by the Dean.
During the service the Royal Charter was borne through the Abbey church by Officers led by Pat Duffy, Beadle, HMRC.
Prayers were led by The Reverend Christopher Stoltz, Minor Canon and Sacrist of Westminster, and said by: Dorothy Brown, Director, Personal Tax Operations; Colin Ford, Acting Deputy Director, Business Customer and Strategy; The Reverend David Stanton, Canon in Residence; Michael Howe, Director Business Tax Operations; William Hague, Chief People Officer; and Lin Homer CB, Chief Executive.
The service was sung by the Westminster Abbey Special Service Choir conducted by Daniel Cook, Sub-Organist. The organ was played by Martin Ford, Assistant Organist, and before the service by Jeremy Woodside, Organ Scholar.
Here is a link to the Order of Service.
Here is a link to the Sermon.
Tax does have to be taxing.
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At the risk of being struck down by lightning I have to ask
ReplyDelete"Who the hell do these people think they are?"
How many of the hypocrites in the audience (not congregation) actually believe in God, after all its God's house they entered after all?
ReplyDeleteWonder if anyone gave thanks that the situation in HMRC is not worse than its current appalling state of affairs?
Why should my tax contribute to this delusional self agrandisment by a department that is so inept and badly managed?
Was it kept quiet and out of the media on purpose and by dictat from HMG?
Will Homer be seeking a Papal audience any time soon?
farking unbelievable!
Hope they asked forgiveness for bullying, and shiting from a great height on thousands of fromer and current members of staff who had more dedication to Customs and Excise and the Inland Reveune than any of these muppets ever had.
ReplyDeleteGod help them all and may the lord have mercy on their souls..they're going to need it. Heathens!
ReplyDeleteHomer and her cronies haven't got a pious bone in their bodies - who do they think they are???
ReplyDeleteCertainly not on this planet!
DeleteKen and readers, anyone able to find a report in the press or on HMRC website following the 'event'?
ReplyDeleteIf not reported why not? Seems strange that a service led by the Dean of Westminster himself and was to celebrate collaboration (who with, vampire squids and phone companies?)
Must be wanting to avoid, or is it evade, adverse criticism?
An overtly Christian service-this may have been ok 50 years ago when the country, let alone Government Departments, was obstensible Christian.
ReplyDeleteBut in the multi racial and multi belief country we now live in, I find it quite offensive that the service followed the one-religion path it did.
Excom really do live in the past, despite all this Building our Future crap.
A more dignified use of the service might have been a remembrance of the Civil Service Rifle volunteers who died in the 1914-18 war including many Revenue staff.
ReplyDeleteQuite list of battle honours for a bunch of pen pushers including Festubert 1915, Loos, Somme 1916 '18, Flers-Courcelette, Le Transloy, Messines 1917, Ypres 1917, Cambrai 1917, St. Quentin, Ancre 1918, Albert 1918, Bapaume 1918, Pursuit to Mons, France and Flanders 1915-18, Doiran 1917, Macedonia 1916-17, Gaza, Nebi Samwil, Jerusalem, Palestine 1917-18.
Too much to expect charlatans like Homer and Co to commemorate their sacrifice
Absolutely spot on.
DeleteIt was apparently supposed to raise staff morale this is the morale that is so low most staff are cowering on the floor where their chins dropped when the heard about this service. Just shows how deluded and cut off these people are (and breathtakingly arrogant). The only people that were impressed by all of this are the arse lickers and crawlers and people that want to 'get on' that believe all the shite and follow all the crap leadership they are given. Trampling over all the civil servants on their way I musnt forget ( thats good to put on your PMR).
ReplyDeleteThe astute may believe there is a connection between the plummeting performance of HMRC, it's extensive bullying of staff, adherence to Japanese car production methodology, disdain for taxpayer, lying, law breaking and Common Purpose.
ReplyDeleteOf course, it could all be just a sad coincidence, but unless you work in the hell-hole that is HMRC you would not have a clue.
It remains a mystery as to how this department has been allowed to remain so bad for so long wasting billions, yes billions of taxpayers money whilst lurching from one crisis to the next, and don't mention IT or RTI, they have just been included as an additional chapter in The Emperor's New Clothes rewrite.
Absolute arrogance to hold this service but shows the sheer contempt by those concerned.
Yes billions & billions of waste on top down rubbish!
DeleteHowever that is billions & billions pumped into the private sector in IT & consultancy and the like!
27/09/14 07:28 & 10:05 - both of you are spot on - couldn't agree with you more - these people are beneath contempt.
ReplyDeleteThe only people left working at HMRC in the next few years are going to be right twats because weakness of any sort or non adherance to the HMRC way will not be permitted. Everyone showing any signs of weakness or non adherance will be driven out in one way or another or persued until they give up exhausted and left with no more to give.Their relentless persuit will pay a price by ruining decent people lives unfortunatley and destroying their confidence and self respect..Thats why this service was wrong and if you do believe in god then it is beyond hypocrisy. I pray for their souls they will need it.
ReplyDeleteIt is an import from the private sector and known as managing people out of the business. The bullying and law breaking are known to the top brass and the government but no-one gives a f♡c# including the public!
DeleteThe costs to the taxpayer will never be known in terms of money, in terms of human tragedy not only are the staff affected, so are the taxpayers and the public in general. Inefficient HMRC is losing or writing off billions which leads to further cuts in order to attempt to compensate for the defecit.
Makes you wonder why the department has not registered as a charity given their "success" in gifting our hard earned taxes!
As for Homers breathtaking arrogance in stating that her bonus was justified let alone being responsible for the Westminster Abbey parade of the vainglorious it simply beggars belief that this woman remains within a square mile of any position of influence given her continuing abysmal track record.
From what I have seen for some time now are indications that would support a legal contention that there is sufficient evidence to support a number of prima facie cases against more than a few managers for a variety of offences ranging from misconduct in a public office through misfeasance and malfeasance and the breaking of Health & Safety legislation.
ReplyDeleteIt would keep the likes of Michael Mansfield employed for a few years prosecuting the bunch of bar stewards that infest the layers of HMRC management.
Perhaps they were all in confession at Westminster Cathedral after the Abbey event?
Is Lin Homer taunting us? Having been shameless over her bonus, she now thinks she has God on her side and that she has some right to claim success on the backs of her downtrodden staff. It will be interesting to see what comes out of the People Survey currently being completed within HMRC. Whatever the results, nothing will change, as all senior management do about dissatisfaction is to crow about some minor IT improvements. It is either extreme naivety or equally extreme cynicism.
ReplyDeleteI would not respond to it personally I dont trust it We wre told we had a slot to fill it in and I said I wouldnt and that was that.
ReplyDelete