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HMRC (Office Closures)

In this part of my speech, I am relying heavily on representations that I have received from the low incomes tax reform group of the Chartered Institute of Taxation. I question whether the reforms of HMRC are being done in the most efficient way. In representations to me, the group said that""by diverting resources away from front-line services, HMRC are not only making life more difficult for unrepresented customers at a time when the tax system is becoming at once more complex and more unforgiving of error, but also creating the necessity for more expensive interventions into taxpayers' affairs. Alternative ways of contacting HMRC do not always work well, and exclude a considerable proportion of the taxpaying population who find the telephone or the internet beyond their skills."" What assessment have the Government made of the reforms? Do they accept that services are being transferred away from the front line, and do they consider that to be the best way for HMRC to be managed?