Security Incidents Double In Wales Over 5 Years

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The BBC reports that the number of "security incidents" across the five HMRC offices in Wales has almost doubled in five years.

The figures have risen from 807 in 2014-15 to 1584 in 2018-19.

Unauthorised disclosures - data revealed to the wrong people - has also doubled.

An HMRC spokeswoman said "we take all security incidents seriously and ensure that lessons are learnt from all cases".

The bulk of the incidents, at offices in Swansea, Wrexham, Porthmadog and two offices in Cardiff, were "unauthorised disclosures" of data.

This category of incidents increased from 642 in 2014-15 to 1353 in 2018-19, according to information obtained using a Freedom of Information request.

HMRC point out that unauthorised disclosure figures "will not all be related to customer data. Some may be internal HMRC data such as policy, guidance, workings/calculations, court proceedings etc".

As well as unauthorised disclosures, the total of 1584 incidents in 2018-19 cover a wide variety of circumstances including 66 cases of data loss through the post and three electronically, theft, loss of building passes and IT security.

Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

HMRC Fails In Wales

Kudos to HMRC for not only screwing up the tax codes of the good people of Scotland, but also for doing the same in Wales.

WalesOnline reports that people across Wales have been paying the wrong rate of income tax because of an HMRC blunder.


Some people in Wales have had a Scottish tax code applied to their income tax which is a higher rate.

The Welsh Rates of Income Tax (WRIT) was introduced in April 2019. Welsh taxpayers are assigned a C prefix in their tax code denoting where they live.

HMRC has admitted applying an S prefix, so some people meaning they are paying Scottish rates.

It is not yet known how many people are affected.

The Chair of the National Assembly’s Finance Committee, Llyr Gruffydd AM said:

"HMRC’s admission is deeply disappointing as this Committee was repeatedly given assurances that mistakes like this would not happen.

We raised concerns about the flagging process for identifying Welsh taxpayers during our inquiries into fiscal devolution and the Welsh Government’s draft budget.

On each occasion we were told the matter was in hand and the lessons from the devolution of income tax powers to Scotland, where there were similar issues, had been soundly learned and would be put into effect.

We are seeking an immediate explanation of how this has happened and will be asking representatives from HMRC to appear before this Committee in the near future.”

An HMRC spokesman said:

"We have been made aware of an error in the application of new income tax codes for Welsh taxpayers by some employers which has meant some taxpayers payed the incorrect amount of tax in April.

It is the responsibility of the employer to apply the tax codes provided by HMRC and we are working closely with the employers affected and providing support as they investigate and correct the problem."

They were warned that this would happen!

Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

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.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

HMRC Signs Largest Ever Office Deal In Wales

HMRC have made the record books in Wales, for agreeing the largest office deal ever seen in Wales.

HMRC will move to a new headquarters in the centre of Cardiff - at the heart of a new public sector hub that will employ 4,000.

HMRC, which currently has its main tax office in Wales in the Llanishen area of Cardiff, has signed up to a new 266,000 sq ft building in a major pre-let deal which marks the next phase of development at the Central Square regeneration scheme in the centre of the capital.

WalesOnline reports that it is scheduled for completed in late 2019, with HMRC moving into its new offices from 2020.

The 12 storey building will be known as 6 Central Square. It will be built by construction firm Robert McAlpine. However, there is the small matter of planning consent for the £100m project. A determination is expected next month.

The move will allow HMRC to sell its existing site in Llanishen for redevelopment, potentially for a housing led regeneration scheme. Some 3,600 HMRC staff (full-time equivalent) will be based in the HQ.

HMRC has agreed a 25-year lease for its new building at Central Square. It is understood there is no break clause and the rent - starting at around £16 a sq ft per annum - will be subject to rent reviews based on the then retail prices index measure of inflation every five years.

HMRC is also forward committing £20m to the fitout of the building.

Once completed the building's ownership with transfer to L&G's pension arm - for what is a prized investment asset, due to the strong covenant provided by a government organisation over 25-years with no break clause.

Minister for Government Resilience and Efficiency, Caroline Nokes, said:

“This Government is committed to delivering the best quality public services in every corner of the UK, and today’s announcement is an important step towards that.

This new lease is great news for Cardiff, and will deliver a range of benefits to people in Cardiff, from improved public space and transport to better access to the Principality Stadium from the station.”

Let us trust that the rent that HMRC pays is "reasonable" when compared to similar properties/locations. Let us also trust that the building remains fit for purpose for the expected 25 year rental period!


Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance




HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

HMRC Scores Largest Cardiff Property Deal of The Year

As the commercial property bubble appears to have been pricked by Brexit, I see that HMRC in Cardiff has just secured the largest property deal of the year in Cardiff with Cooke & Arkwright.

HMRC has completed on 54,587 sq ft at Brunel House.

HMRC has an ongoing long term requirement for its Welsh regional hub, bringing new work to Wales and accommodating up to 3,800 full-time posts in the city centre by 2019.

Brunel House is managed by Mercer Real Estate Partners. Alex Hardwick, from Mercer, is quoted by Wales Online:

“We are delighted to have secured such a substantial letting to the building within such a short timeframe of taking over the building, and look forward to welcoming HMRC to Brunel House."

Meanwhile...

In Dramatic Twist, UK Property Fund Cuts Value Of Its Assets By 17%

Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

The Ballad of Ty Glas Tax Office

My thanks to the loyal reader who posted this comment on the article about the closure of Ty Glas:

Saddened to learn was I, probably like so many others, of the proposed demise of the Ty Glas Open Prison.
 

Alas, no more will the sympathetic and supportive management 'encourage' staff to attend work when the Police are advising nothing but emergency travel be undertaken given the predicted blizzards.
 

No more will staff have to exit past the post room (other exits are available) when suspicious parcels are therein.
 

The delightful female car park 'Stasi' operator will no longer be able to waste time staring out of the window to report those travelling the wrong way around or parking badle (at least she was consistent).
 

No more will the kitchen cleaning rosters have to be drwan up and adhered to or be punished. (must wonder how long before a toilet cleaning roster was introduced?)
 

No more will anyone threaten disciplinary action for writing on a disused whiteboard (suitable pen of course).
 

No more will staff have to sit at desks in overcoats, hats and scarves in the winter because their office is so fecking cold! (that's the problem when a building contract ends up with staff in a room formally occupied by main frame systems and a very high ceiling)
 

And don't mention the fire brigade threatening to close the building down because the fire doors couldnt stop a pike in a poke and also blew ajar during high winds.
 

Yes, I am sure the staff will miss this edifice when they transfer.
 

I for one am prepared to make a contribution to a charity for the absolute pleasure of pressing the red button - (preferably with a few of the Muppets still in there) - a joke of course, but I am prepared to pay for the joy of pressing that red button and watching the House of Horrors drop...

Lovely place to work, my arse!

Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

HMRC Recruiting Customer Service Consultants

WalesOnline reports that HMRC is recruiting 480 people for posts in the HMRC office in Cardiff. The full-time posts are for customer service consultants, and starting salaries are up to £20,000.

Meanwhile HMRC is preparing to close it existing office at Ty Glas, Llanishen and move to another site in the city. The Ty Glas tax office currently employs around 2,100 and is mainly a processing centre with some technical jobs. Those recruited for the new roles will be expected to handle incoming customer calls and where necessary resolve customer complaints.

The HMRC "strategy" is one of getting rid of experienced tax professionals, and replacing them with call centre operatives with little or no experience/understanding of tax.

Yes, that will work!

Oh and by the way, will HMRC please stop calling taxpayers "customers"!

Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"

Building Our Future - Touchdown Sites

The Daily Post reports that HMRC is looking at the possibility of axing its site at Wrexham Technology Park, with the 383-strong workforce potentially moving to a centralised office in Liverpool or Manchester.

Plaid Cymru MP Hywel Williams wrote a letter to HMRC last month asking questions about future plans for the service in Wales, and has now received a response detailing proposals for new regional centres.

As part of its ‘Building our Future’ programme, HMRC has earmarked Cardiff as the centralised base for Wales with services at Wrexham being moved to England. It says more detail will be available by the end of this year.

An HMRC spokesman said:

“HMRC is seeking to transform our shape and size. We’re bringing our IT and infrastructure right up to date and want to draw most of our teams closer together in a smaller number of large, modern, adaptable regional centres. These centres will be supported by a UK-wide network of smaller specialist and touchdown sites.

We have already shared our early thinking that Cardiff is the most suitable location for a regional centre in Wales. As far as Wrexham is concerned the nearest regional centre is more likely to be Liverpool or Manchester depending upon where individuals live but no firm decisions have yet been made. 

Initial details were sent to MPs and Assembly Members in October last year and we will be continuing to keep MPs and Assembly Members informed as this work progresses.

Ultimately, the changes that we are making mean we will be able to deliver even more for our customers, for the taxpayer, and for the UK.”

What pray tell is a "touchdown site"???

Anyone???

Tax does have to be taxing.

Professional Cover Against the Threat of Costly TAX and VAT Investigations

Insurance to protect you against the cost of enquiry or dispute with HMRC is available from several sources including Solar Tax Investigation Insurance.

Ken Frost has negotiated a 10% discount on any polices that may suit your needs.

However, neither Ken Frost nor HMRCISSHITE either endorses or recommends their services.

What is Solar Tax Investigation Insurance?

Solar Tax Investigation Insurance is a tax-fee protection service that will pay up to £75,000 towards your accountant's fees in the event of an HM Revenue & Customs full enquiry or dispute.

To find out more, please use this link Solar Tax Investigation Insurance



HMRC Is Shite (www.hmrcisshite.com), also available via the domain www.hmrconline.com, is brought to you by www.kenfrost.com "The Living Brand"