Friday 11 August 2017

Joining The Dots of HMRC's Property Deals


Unsurprisingly, yesterday's article about HMRC's very expensive superhub in Cardiff has raised a few eyebrows and issues.

My thanks to a loyal reader for posting the following comment that highlights a few dots that need to be joined:
"Whoa there pilgrim, just a cotton picking minute, let's take a closer look at this afore ye spend all that "customer's" money!?

Who owns the Llanishen site? Thought Mapely did as per Wales On Line 13 Nov 2015 - The freehold interest in the current HMRC office site at Llanishen is owned by Mapeley Estates, following a private finance initiative agreement ...????


Surely that was why HMRC was paying for rent etc. on the site?

Then there is the matter of £20m (currently) for fitting out, so the lease is bare building? This is (currently) £5000/head just to fit out! WTF they having 22" plasma screens, gold plated loo's, FFS?! Piss off to IKEA, just a mile or 2 down the road and save yourself a few million!

Transport/parking infrastructure - all of a sudden 4.000 extra staff plus security, cleaners, deliveries etc. land upon the centre of Cardiff via train, bus, car, pedal, foot. Bloody trains have to queue now outside the station and Cardiff traffic is a nightmare for public and private transport.

Who is actually paying for this "range of benefits to people in Cardiff" ? Oh, that's all right then, it is only the end user that has to worry then, come back in 5 years time and see how much the real cost has reached!

Given the appalling track record of previous estate deals in this part of the public sector this needs a wee dig by an investigative journo' to establish VFM and whether basic business checks have been applied to such an amount of "customer expenditure".

Oh, yes, as these Muppets no longer FTF with their "customer" base, why the need for an expensive central location - vanity? Is there a common purpose associated with the development that remains hidden?

Answers on the back of a postage stamp please.
"
Oh, and don't forget (as per WalesOnline):
"The freehold interest in the current HMRC office site at Llanishen is owned by Mapeley Estates, following a private finance initiative agreement with the UK government. 

But that deal will expire around 2020. The land would then revert into UK government ownership."
2020 being the year that HMRC moves to its superhub.

There's irony for you!

Tax does have to be taxing.

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10 comments:

  1. Sell estate at non-market rate to private sector
    offshore tax haven
    private sector subsequently paid £X by public sector to sweeten deal, wtf was that about?
    sub-standard building/accommodation/unsafe environments net result for staff to continue working in
    contract cleaning but cleaning roster for staff to clean kitchen, wtf? (you mean the customer paid the taxman to do what the taxman was paying the cleaners to do?)
    soon (2020) moving to as yet unbuilt building in expensive central city location with acres of disused office space already in situ & serviced
    current estimated £5k/head cost to service as yet unbuilt building (what planet are they on)
    parking/transport nightmare
    2020 - ding a ling!
    buy back/sell back 3rd party estates (well the 3rd party is not a registered charity?)

    So public sector ends up with an "assett" that it previously owned, sold, leased back and then is buying back the previously disposed of "assett"

    is there anyone able to explain this "arrangement" to the satisfaction of a "customer"

    (customer = taxpayer = money tree)



    ReplyDelete
  2. HMRC are just so corrupt, so, so corrupt. Staff committing criminal offences which are covered up despite the Chief Executive being aware. Thereafter nothing can shock one with this lot. Never mind, its only taxpayers money.

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    Replies
    1. Corruption in HMRC is well known about;
      many have raised the alarm about the climate of bullying and intimidation and casual law breaking;
      however much that noise is amplified is falls on deaf ears;
      the thugs who enable it, collecting huge salaries from the public purse, behave like a bunch of cowards who know they are ABOVE THE LAW and there nothing can be done; like bullies the world over, they dish it without consequence to their targets but they are too weak and shit scared to be accountable;
      some of these thugs probably even masquerade as holier than thou decent members of society on the back of their publically paid position;
      they are SCUM

      Delete
    2. For the love of God, what are the criminal offences being committed, and how they are being covered up? As a very concerned taxpayer, I will take any evidence you have to the police, seeing those who know these offences are taking place are doing sod all about them

      Delete
    3. I think the issue here is various criminal offences under CRCA 2005, DPA 1998, Misconduct in Public Office in addition to much civil law breaking has been suppressed, covered up and generally dismissed by HMRC management.

      One person on here previously talked about failures under the DDA/ Equality Act 2010. They were left in limbo off work sick, and receiving no pay, because HMRC would not comply with the law. Eventually they left HMRC with no redundancy /medical compensation for their long service. This person also said that some so-called investigation took place which resulted in a manager with integrity & morals leaving due to the cover up. Other people have talked about being stitched up, bullied and even third party involvement in HMRC intimidation.

      When MPs and unions etc are apparently aware of reports of such misconduct, it would appear there is a climate of being able to operate with impunity for many inside the HMRC mental home.

      Delete
  3. Mental home is a true reflection in an organisation that prefers to pass it's own bile as being factually correct on the grounds of "because we say so". Hope the stars of tonight's CH4 pantomime are as squeaky clean and above impropriety? But I doubt it.

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  4. If I may ask a question: do any loyal readers know whether its true that the C4 'HMRC documentary' due to air tonight is a 'watered down' version of what was originally planned?

    If that is the case, any knowledge or thoughts on why ??

    I hope that only law abiding members of staff, with honesty & integrity, have been selected to appear in the programme, otherwise, shall we say 'less law abiding and honest characters' might be about to get fame they don't really want should the press become involved!

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  5. 30 minutes in and this C4 documentary is as useless as the HMRC itself..what a shambles....my 4yo son could have come up with a better production !!

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  6. What a weird and pathetic documentary, as the above alludes to, so similar to HMRC itself.

    A few observations:-

    1. Linda Homer has long since left as CEO (with huge payoff and gong) - why no comment from fat boy?

    2. The comments that HMRC are 'a law unto themselves' - how true!

    3. The female 'intelligence officer' who insisted on referring to taxpayers as 'customers'

    4. The usual theme of how HMRC are soft on big business and hard on the little trader

    5. The visit to the auctioneers by the female 'compliance officer' - this is NOT typical work and so was grossly misleading to the viewer

    6. The meeting to discuss 'lifestyle' showed just how out of touch many of those currently employed by HMRC are - lack of experience dealing with traders/taxpayers face to face and lack of life experience might explain their pathetic naivety.

    7. ...and no mention of the climate of bullying & dishonesty, no mention of their numerous failures and no mention of the casual law breaking which goes on without impunity.

    When considered in the context that HMRC have presumably been arguing over the editorial of this documentary over the last 3-4 years and the end result was supposed to show how wonderful HMRC is, then it completely failed. When you further consider all the unsavoury issues which were not aired then, well it's time for that investigation.

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  7. As for the female investigator, well, I do hope all of HMRC's investigators are as squeaky clean as this one appears to be. I would like to say with confidence that they are without a shred of doubt, but I won't. Like all who start climbing the greasy pole especially HMRC's self styled people managers, excom members and political aficionados such as the disgraceful leech Homer, they quite quickly get to the teflon coated section. Nothing sticks ranging from incorrectly claiming expenses and toil time to blatant lies operationally. Not all investigators and managers have been infected by the rot, but the over ambitious and poorly trained ones know which side their breads buttered and a bullying we will go and we'll all pretend it for the greater good and wellbeing.

    ReplyDelete