HMRC has defended its scheme, stating that there will never be a situation where a large number of staff will be volunteering at the same time. According to the organization, based on the 66,000 staff, the allocated 3,500 days equates to just 25 minutes per person per year.
Compared to other government departments, HMRC’s policy is considered more generous. For example, civil servants at the Department for International Trade receive three days of paid leave to volunteer, while the Ministry of Defence allows six paid days off.
In the private sector, similar schemes exist where staff can take up to one day of paid leave to volunteer, although the specific policies may vary.
HMRC employees have the freedom to choose where they volunteer. One civil servant shared their experience of volunteering at a Scout group by “preparing a Spaghetti Bolognaise and ensuring the Scouts have brushed their teeth” on the tax office’s website.
In December, an IT blunder occurred, resulting in approximately 99,000 callers being unable to reach HMRC’s phone lines and online services. This incident prompted MPs to initiate an investigation into the outage.
More recently, taxpayers and accountants have reported long wait times of over an hour when trying to speak to an adviser at HMRC. Additionally, some individuals have had to wait for months before receiving a response to their letters.
According to HMRC data, the average wait time for taxpayers before their calls are answered is now 15 minutes, compared to the pre-pandemic wait time of just five minutes.
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