HMRC Purpose, Vision and Way

HMRC has issued its business plan for 2009-2010.  For a document which is available to all of HMRC's 30 million "customers" but is, in the event, going to be read by barely a handful of them, one has to wonder how much of the reputed annual government spend of £4 billion on external consultants goes towards producing this risible tat, and whether the money might be better spent, in the alternative, on some extra wages for the poor sods who staff the HMRC call centres.

The wankword bingo flavour is present throughout. Our favourites are the statements that HMRC will substantially reduce the number of data security incidents and substantially reduce cases of customer data misuse.  In other words, HMRC, by their very own admission, will still lose, or abuse, taxpayers' confidential information but HMRC are aiming to be less incomeptent and criminal than they have been previously.

Very reassuring, as is this gem  ..."Make customers feel it has become simpler for them to do business with us." So, not actually making it simpler but, rather, just making it feel like it.  Priceless.