The saga over whether HMRC will axe its tax helpline continues to rumble on, with the latest
comments suggesting it may still close after all.

HMRC had to back down from a proposal that would see the Self-Assessment line closed from 8 April to 30 September, following widespread pressure and then
the intervention of Chancellor Jeremy Hunt.

In the latest twist though, Jim Harra, HMRC’s chief executive, has refused to rule out future helpline cuts. Speaking to
The Treasury
Select Committee in late April, he said the time-limited closure…

We‘ve seen plenty of speculation before the last two Budgets that Inheritance
Tax would see major reforms. Yet nothing materialised. And the latest figures released by the Treasury show perhaps why there might be
some reluctance to change the rules, with the amount of tax received hitting a record high.

The latest stats have shown that the Treasury looks set to collect £7.54bn in the 2023/24 tax year. That‘s higher than the previous record
of £7.1bn, which was recorded in the 2022/23 tax year.

The Treasury has brought in £6.8bn…

You‘ve probably digested the main news by now from the Spring Budget. Now comes the next
stage:the Spring Finance Bill. The bill was published on 14 March, ensuring that
the measures announced in the Budget take their next steps towards becoming reality.

Whenever a government announces new taxation in a Budget or Spring or Autumn Statement, these plans require statutory (or legislative) authority.
A number of tax changes will now be enshrined into law if the bill passes as expected.

Cuts to National Insurance contributions and the abolition of…

As had been trailed in many of the newspapers in the week leading up to the Budget,
the contentious ‘non-dom’ scheme will be scrapped.

Mirroring what has been one of the higher profile policies of the Labour Party, Mr Hunt said the tax breaks for wealthy foreign residents
in the UK will be abolished and replaced with a new scheme.

So-called non-doms are UK residents but not domiciled here for tax purposes.

Mr Hunt said the Government would “introduce a system which is both fairer and remains competitive with other countries.”

“The…

The higher rate of property capital gains tax is to be reduced from 28% to 24%.

The Government said that it had concluded, following a review of costs by the Treasury and the OBR, the change would increase revenues because
there would be more transactions.

However, the lower rate will remain at 18% for any gains that fall within an individual’s basic rate band.

On that point, the official Budget papers stated: “This will encourage landlords and second homeowners to sell their properties, making more
available for a variety of buyers…