HMRC to make efficiency savings of 25%

In his spending review report , published on 20 October 2010, Osborne says that as well as making better use of technology the department can find overall resource savings of 15% through efficiency savings from IT contracts and rationalising HMRC's property estate. "In order to focus resources on frontline tax collection, HMRC will invest in new technology to improve risk assessment capability, better join up taxpayer information and streamline internal processes. Savings will be maximised from IT and other procurement contracts and administration costs will be reduced by a third with reductions in the size of corporate services and back office support functions," says the document. The government also says that it wants to modernise tax administration and that it will "improve and tailor services for taxpayers". All businesses will file tax returns online by 2012, and the government wants at least 80% of personal self assessments to be filed online by 2014-15. It added that HMRC will also modernise PAYE, "moving towards more real time information so that people can be reassured that they have paid the right amount of tax throughout the year". HMRC is to receive £900m of funding to tackle benefit fraud, with the aim of bringing an additional £7bn annually in tax revenues by 2014-15. A spokesperson for HMRC told GC News that it was too early to comment on specific plans outlined by George Osborne, but said it was "currently working on all the details" set out by the chancellor. What the announcement will mean for the department will be a lot clearer "towards the tail end of next week", the spokesperson added.