Businesses should not be forced to go digital

The House of Commons Treasury committee has published correspondence between Andrew Tyrie MP chairman of the committee and David Gauke MP financial secretary to the Treasury on Making Tax Digital.

Mr Tyrie noted that for most businesses and many individuals digital tax accounts ‘may be a sensible direction of travel’. But he said that some people such as those who do not use computers or for whom quarterly reporting would be a burden were ‘very concerned about these proposals’.

He recommended that the government consult widely before reaching any final decisions.

‘The requirement for all businesses to maintain a digital tax account needs to be tempered by provisions for those for whom this would be an unreasonable burden. Nor should an ambitious timetable be imposed at the expense of greater clarity for the millions of businesses these changes will affect ’ he...