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HMRC Data Loss

We do not know all those things, as I believe the hon. Gentleman well knows. The Poynter inquiry and, indeed, the parallel inquiry of Sir John Bourn on behalf of the National Audit Office, were set up precisely because we need to find the facts before drawing our conclusions. I am not sure whether the hon. Gentleman has had an opportunity to view Mr. Poynter's interim report, but it says that although the e-mail in respect of the first request in March was copied to the person responsible for the data:"““That email on its own does not prove that the official actually took the decision in relation to the manner in which HMRC should have responded to the request””." What the hon. Gentleman said about that was quite wrong. In addition, I was not going to labour the point, but I should draw the House's attention to the letter written by the second director at the National Audit Office to the same senior official in HMRC on 9 November, in which it is recognised that the way in which the request was communicated—let me put it this way—could have been better. An apology was given for what happened, but let us wait and establish the facts rather than rush to judgment, which the hon. Gentleman has been rather quick to do of late.