Dave Hartnett will retire from HMRC next summer, HMRC said on Friday as it announced that Lin Homer is to succeed Lesley Strathie as Chief Executive.
Hartnett, Permanent Secretary for Tax, has come under increasing pressure in recent months over the department’s settlement of tax disputes with Goldman Sachs and Vodafone. MPs investigating the settlement of major tax disputes are expected to report before Christmas.
But Hartnett told the Public Accounts Committee in November that critical media coverage of the settlements was ‘incomplete’ and that he had no plans to resign over the issue. He insisted that legislation protecting taxpayer confidentiality prevented him from answering MPs’ detailed questions about Goldman’s tax affairs.
HMRC’s press release noted that Hartnett will be 61 in February 2012. ‘The usual retirement age for a Permanent Secretary is 60,’ it said. The Guardian quoted an HMRC spokesman as saying that Hartnett had not been pushed or encouraged to announce his retirement. ‘His chair has not been moved closer to the door,’ the spokesman said.
Homer’s appointment was welcomed by the FDA, which represents senior managers and professionals in HMRC.
Jonathan Baume, FDA General Secretary, said: ‘She joins the department at a difficult time and faces some formidable challenges. There are continuing problems of staff engagement, highlighted by the annual staff survey, and real difficulties arising from the continuing reduction in resources.’
Baume added that an ‘often vindictive public campaign of misinformation’ about tax policy issues and the role of individuals was ‘undermining morale’.
‘We also welcome Dave Hartnett's agreement to postpone his retirement from HMRC until next summer to help ensure a smooth transition, and the restructuring of senior posts, which will give greater clarity and accountability at the top of the department.’
The protest group UK Uncut, which has called for Hartnett’s resignation over what it called ‘deals for the super-rich’, welcomed the announcement of his retirement. The group interrupted Hartnett’s speech at a recent Tax Journal conference.
Alana Hay from UK Uncut said: ‘We hope that his departure brings a new way of working for HMRC, one which means that big business is not let off millions or even billions of pounds.’
Homer was appointed Permanent Secretary at the Department for Transport last year. She was previously Chief Executive of the UK Border Agency.
‘I will greatly benefit from the experience and continuity provided by both Mike Clasper and Dave Hartnett as I take up the reins at HMRC,’ she said. Lesley Strathie stepped down as Chief Executive last month because of illness.
Mike Clasper has been HMRC’s Non-Executive Chairman since 2008. HMRC said a process to find Clasper’s successor ‘will commence, as planned, early in 2012’.
Dave Hartnett will retire from HMRC next summer, HMRC said on Friday as it announced that Lin Homer is to succeed Lesley Strathie as Chief Executive.
Hartnett, Permanent Secretary for Tax, has come under increasing pressure in recent months over the department’s settlement of tax disputes with Goldman Sachs and Vodafone. MPs investigating the settlement of major tax disputes are expected to report before Christmas.
But Hartnett told the Public Accounts Committee in November that critical media coverage of the settlements was ‘incomplete’ and that he had no plans to resign over the issue. He insisted that legislation protecting taxpayer confidentiality prevented him from answering MPs’ detailed questions about Goldman’s tax affairs.
HMRC’s press release noted that Hartnett will be 61 in February 2012. ‘The usual retirement age for a Permanent Secretary is 60,’ it said. The Guardian quoted an HMRC spokesman as saying that Hartnett had not been pushed or encouraged to announce his retirement. ‘His chair has not been moved closer to the door,’ the spokesman said.
Homer’s appointment was welcomed by the FDA, which represents senior managers and professionals in HMRC.
Jonathan Baume, FDA General Secretary, said: ‘She joins the department at a difficult time and faces some formidable challenges. There are continuing problems of staff engagement, highlighted by the annual staff survey, and real difficulties arising from the continuing reduction in resources.’
Baume added that an ‘often vindictive public campaign of misinformation’ about tax policy issues and the role of individuals was ‘undermining morale’.
‘We also welcome Dave Hartnett's agreement to postpone his retirement from HMRC until next summer to help ensure a smooth transition, and the restructuring of senior posts, which will give greater clarity and accountability at the top of the department.’
The protest group UK Uncut, which has called for Hartnett’s resignation over what it called ‘deals for the super-rich’, welcomed the announcement of his retirement. The group interrupted Hartnett’s speech at a recent Tax Journal conference.
Alana Hay from UK Uncut said: ‘We hope that his departure brings a new way of working for HMRC, one which means that big business is not let off millions or even billions of pounds.’
Homer was appointed Permanent Secretary at the Department for Transport last year. She was previously Chief Executive of the UK Border Agency.
‘I will greatly benefit from the experience and continuity provided by both Mike Clasper and Dave Hartnett as I take up the reins at HMRC,’ she said. Lesley Strathie stepped down as Chief Executive last month because of illness.
Mike Clasper has been HMRC’s Non-Executive Chairman since 2008. HMRC said a process to find Clasper’s successor ‘will commence, as planned, early in 2012’.
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