CEO's welcome: Tax principles are welcome

Amongst the announcements, we now know that Making Tax Digital will be expanded to those with income over £20,000 from April 2028, and that there are increases in interest and MTD penalty rates, as well as a host of other ‘closing the tax gap’ initiatives. Closing the tax gap was one of three priorities the government gave to HMRC, along with raising delivery standards and reforming and modernising HMRC’s systems. The ATT presentation to its Fellows on 2 April was a timely reminder of how the tax gap is calculated and why it is important to members and their clients.

A flurry of consultation documents was issued, with one really important consultation, ‘Enhancing HMRC’s powers: tackling tax advisers facilitating non-compliance’, requiring responses within just six weeks of its issue (see tinyurl.com/mstm567r). The ATT, CIOT and LITRG technical officers have worked incredibly hard alongside our professional standards team to ensure that responses were made on time, reflecting our support to tackle facilitated non-compliance as long as any measures are just, fair and proportionate. Copies of the response submissions can be found within the respective ‘Technical’ sections on our websites.

There are still a number of consultation responses which the ATT, CIOT and LITRG technical officers are working on, so if you would like to help shape any of our outstanding responses, we would encourage you to contact the technical teams and share your thoughts.

Last month, the ATT issued its ten principles for the tax system setting out how we believe the tax system should be designed and operated (see tinyurl.com/yf5znz6r). The principles are intended to reflect the ATT’s focus on the practicalities of the tax system; and our aim is to ensure that it is workable and as fair as possible for the general public. We will consider these principles when evaluating tax policy, processes and administration, and refer to them in our responses to consultations on the development of the UK tax system.

May is always a special month for us as we support students sitting their exams – this year in record numbers. We wish all our students the very best for the exam season and we are both rooting for you!

Of course, learning continues beyond exams, and continuing professional development (CPD) is a mandatory requirement for all our members, keeping your skills and knowledge up to date, and giving employers and clients comfort in your competence. For those seeking to increase their CPD, bookings for the ATT Annual Conferences are now open. We are running three conferences this year to give people a choice of dates – two virtual sessions on Tuesday 4 and Wednesday 12 June and a face-to-face session on Wednesday 19 June at our London offices in Monck Street. Spaces for the face-to-face session are limited, so we suggest that you book early to avoid disappointment. You can register for the conference at: www.att.org.uk/attconf2025.

We are also looking forward to meeting members at our Tax Technology conference in Birmingham next month. With interactive sessions for small, mid-sized and large firms, there is something for everyone. You can book your place for the conference at: tinyurl.com/ycrrh9xt

Finally, the ATT and the LITRG of the CIOT have had some staff changes. The ATT technical team is growing, and welcomed Autumn Murphy as the first of three new Technical Officers joining this year. And we also congratulate Antonia Stokes in her confirmation as senior manager within LITRG.