Written question asked by Jamie Reed (Labour) on Friday, 7 March 2008, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 12 March 2008. It was answered by Jane Kennedy (Labour) on Thursday, 13 March 2008 on behalf of the Treasury.

HM Revenue and Customs: Whitehaven

Question: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he expects the consultation on the future of the HM Revenue and Customs office in Whitehaven to (a) begin and (b) conclude; and what criteria he expects to be taken into account in the decision-making process.

Answer: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has too much office space and will need even less in the future. It is therefore engaged in a review programme to decide which offices best suit its future business needs. It has already reviewed offices in and around the major urban centres, and is currently working on a timetable, which it hopes to publish shortly, for the review of its remaining offices, including Whitehaven.The potential impacts of an office closure on staff, customers and the wider local community are taken into account in the decision-making process, and balanced against HMRC's overall aim of restructuring its estate and business in the most efficient way possible.

Secondary information