It’s not all doom and gloom, writes Tony Margaritelli, who celebrates one of our regular writers winning a top industry award.
Welcome to the latest edition of HMRC EIP magazine.
When I sit down to write the opening article for this magazine I have to restrain myself from producing something that simply unloads the past two months’ anger, frustration and even disbelief at HMRC’s efforts. It’s very easy to do this because, boy oh boy, are they giving me the opportunity. And don’t get me started on the latest ‘Timely Payments’ consultation, with a ludicrously short time for responses.
However, this time I’m starting this article with some really good news, that our very own ‘disrupter’, and MTD columnist Robyn Milstead, was announced as the joint winner of Tolley Taxation’s Outstanding Contribution to Taxation in 2025/2026 by an Individual. I’m delighted for Robyn, because the breadth and quality of her output for the year was matched by her subject knowledge and desire to help agents and taxpayers understand and meet their obligations in the face of generally poor communications by HMRC. This is the second year in a row that one of our regular columnists has won this award; in 2024/2025 it went to Paul Rosser. I’m filled with pride that our magazine may have helped in some small way. In this issue Robyn looks at the role social media is playing in the MTD space and she doesn’t pull her punches (see page 12). Paul Rosser’s article, ‘No win, no trace’, looks at the sorry fact that often an R&D claim is made, “the money is paid out, the claim later unravels, and the adviser is either missing or untouched” (page 40).
This month HMRC uploaded their revised guidance on how to make a complaint and I make no bones about reproducing the guidance in full (see pages 32-33). It’s comprehensive and has all the relevant contact information. And it’s important that complaints are made when HMRC’s standards fall below expectation, because they need to know the impact their failures are genuinely having. Print the guidance and keep it handy because I’m sure it will be well used in the coming months and years.
I take great delight in showcasing new contributors to the magazine. In this issue we have first-time contributions from Charlotte Anson of Price Bailey, Stuart Brodie of Claritas Tax, and Ruxandra Murariu- Boatca of Rahman Ravelli. They look at creative industry tax reliefs, common VAT mistakes and SFO investigations respectively. Our old friend, Dave Chaplin, takes great joy in the latest HMRC loss; Mike Lewis clearly articulates that naming and shaming just isn’t working, and Peter Fairchild tells us about two of his recent cases which, to put it mildly, he found ‘frustrating’. Another of our regulars, Nick Scott, explains ‘force majeure’, and why extreme caution is advised. Returning to HMRC and agents, Tarandeep Singh Sangra reviews all the latest changes and concludes that more is expected from agents and taxpayers, while HMRC themselves gather ever more information – and woe betide anyone who they feel fails to deliver on their expectations.
In this edition we have launched a new regular feature, called ‘Tax People’, where my colleague Adam Riches and I chat to tax professionals about their thoughts and experiences in the world of tax. We kick off with Tony Monger and I think readers will enjoy his answers.
Well, that’s enough from me except to say that, as the only magazine without any institute or commercial backing, each and every subscriber is vital as we continue to inform, explain and hold HMRC to account. So please pass a copy to a colleague and ask them to consider subscribing, because a personal recommendation really does count.
- Tony Margaritelli is the Publisher of HMRC EIP magazine