The UK tax row has just gone from ridiculous to idiotic by way of farcical.
It started off badly with a supposedly sophisticated western country admitting that its tax was all to hell and that millions of people had over or underpaid tax in the last few years. It got worse as the week went on with interviews with tax staff saying that no one had the foggiest idea what was happening, the computers couldn’t cope with the work required, there were too few staff to answer inquiries and in general the department was a complete car crash. (I know what they are like from experience ... and the word “nightmare” would be a distinct compliment.)
When at last we got someone from management to put his head above the parapet, it was a jumped up civil serva
nt suit, who was “supposed” to be in charge of the Revenue, and I use the word “supposed” advisedly, He gave an interview to the Money Box programme on Radio 4 and made a monkey of himself in the process . In his interview he point blank refused to apologise to his employers ... us... for the completely cack handed way he has run his department in our tax office despite his £160,000 salary and gold plated pension. He also said that people who owed over £2,000 would be required to pay it back within three months (remembering that those who could not would be charged interest at 10 times the Bank of England’s base rate.)
Finally, with his backside red from the kicking that Osborne gave him, he has apologised. I’ve got very little time for Osborne, who seems to be utterly unaware that there are people in this country who can’t whip ten grand out of their back pockets to repair a restaurant that their kid has trashed, but it seems that this time the PR people have told him what a disaster the muppet from the Revenue had made of himself and that people were being rendered speechless with rage by him... and he has acted.
The muppet in question, Mr Hartnett, Dave to his friends, who is 59 and will probably retire shortly with a multi-million pound unfunded pension of our money, issued a statement. After seeing “no need to apologise”, suddenly he has become “deeply sorry”.
But just to show that they haven’t REALLY learnt their lesson, a spokesman for the Revenue said that Dave was sorry his apology did not come across in the Money Box interview. I suggest a little lesson in communications Dave. If you want to get across a message that you are sorry, it probably best to avoid the words “I, don’t , see, why, I, should and apologise” in that order.
What a bunch of complete and utter incompetents run this country. And we pay them more than we pay the First Minister or the Prime Minister.
It is high time that people like him got the sack for running a shambles of a department in a developed country.
It started off badly with a supposedly sophisticated western country admitting that its tax was all to hell and that millions of people had over or underpaid tax in the last few years. It got worse as the week went on with interviews with tax staff saying that no one had the foggiest idea what was happening, the computers couldn’t cope with the work required, there were too few staff to answer inquiries and in general the department was a complete car crash. (I know what they are like from experience ... and the word “nightmare” would be a distinct compliment.)
When at last we got someone from management to put his head above the parapet, it was a jumped up civil serva
nt suit, who was “supposed” to be in charge of the Revenue, and I use the word “supposed” advisedly, He gave an interview to the Money Box programme on Radio 4 and made a monkey of himself in the process . In his interview he point blank refused to apologise to his employers ... us... for the completely cack handed way he has run his department in our tax office despite his £160,000 salary and gold plated pension. He also said that people who owed over £2,000 would be required to pay it back within three months (remembering that those who could not would be charged interest at 10 times the Bank of England’s base rate.)Finally, with his backside red from the kicking that Osborne gave him, he has apologised. I’ve got very little time for Osborne, who seems to be utterly unaware that there are people in this country who can’t whip ten grand out of their back pockets to repair a restaurant that their kid has trashed, but it seems that this time the PR people have told him what a disaster the muppet from the Revenue had made of himself and that people were being rendered speechless with rage by him... and he has acted.
The muppet in question, Mr Hartnett, Dave to his friends, who is 59 and will probably retire shortly with a multi-million pound unfunded pension of our money, issued a statement. After seeing “no need to apologise”, suddenly he has become “deeply sorry”.
But just to show that they haven’t REALLY learnt their lesson, a spokesman for the Revenue said that Dave was sorry his apology did not come across in the Money Box interview. I suggest a little lesson in communications Dave. If you want to get across a message that you are sorry, it probably best to avoid the words “I, don’t , see, why, I, should and apologise” in that order.
What a bunch of complete and utter incompetents run this country. And we pay them more than we pay the First Minister or the Prime Minister.
It is high time that people like him got the sack for running a shambles of a department in a developed country.
Pics: Dave on the floor at what looks like the Mecca Bingo or a bordello or something of that ilk. And Mr Osborne telling him to buck up... or something that sounds a bit like that.
tris,
ReplyDeleteIt looks as if he's sitting on the "naughty steps" at the entrance to the Treasury after Osborne gave him a kicking. It should be pretty crowded with managers soon. I'll have to get my chum, Lord George, under FOI, to ask about "performance" bonuses paid to him and his cohorts for a job well done.
Ozzie should give him a kick into retirement without pension.
ReplyDeleteHa ha ha... Belly laughing at that one Brownlie. Wish i'd thought of it first though.
ReplyDeleteI wish you would ask old Lordie to ask a question about that. Plenty of money to waste here...
But it would be interesting to know if there are any performance bonuses in the Revenue. I suspect there are and that he will get one.
OR. I believe that these pensions are, in fact, at the discretion of ministers. Osborne hasn't the balls to do it though...
ReplyDeleteMight get blackballed at the club.
damn civil servants! They make the case for reforming and slim lining the public sector middle management for us! I say let these fools continue to speak publically!
ReplyDeleteBut this guy is not middle management Dean.
ReplyDeleteHe's right at the top. He...unbelievably... is in charge.
This is the BEST they have!
God help us!