Recommendation 17

In December 2022, HMRC established a plan to work with its stakeholders to solve issues. In March 2023 it started exploring with taxpayer and agent representatives how quarterly updates could work in practice. It explained that it was looking to adopt a “co- creation” approach where it asked taxpayers how best to design a process and ensure they 33 Qq 15, 55 34 C&AG’s Report, para 3.27–3.30 and Figure 9 35 PTD0006, Written evidence submitted by the Association of Taxation Technicians, 19 June 2023 36 PTD0007, Written evidence submitted by the Institute of Chartered Accountants England and Wales, 19 June 2023 37 C&AG’s Report paras 3.27–3.28 38 PTD0004, Written evidence submitted by Association of Accounting Technicians, 19 June 2023; PTD0006, Written evidence submitted by the Association of Taxation Technicians, 19 June 2023; PTD0007, Written evidence submitted by the Institute of Chartered Accountants England and Wales, 19 June 2023; PTD0008, Written evidence submitted by the Chartered Institute of Taxation, 19 June 2023; PTD0011, Written evidence submitted by the Association of Independent Professionals and the Self-Employed, 19 June 2023; PTD0012, Written evidence submitted by Low Incomes Tax Reform Group, 19 June 2023; PTD0013, Written evidence submitted by the Business Application Software Developers Association, 19 June 2023 Progress with Making Tax Digital 15 were able to input into programme’s design and functionality.39 HMRC told us it was working on ways in which the programme’s stakeholders could give feedback directly to the programme’s senior leadership. This included having a member of the representative bodies on its programme board, together with a member of the software development community. HMRC explained it also now had a co-creation forum with software developers, so that it could understand technical issues and fix them immediately.40