Hi
We were not expecting the Spring Statement to contain much about tax and true to form that is precisely what happened. The
Chancellor has other things on his mind, until the Brexit issue is resolved he cannot really take a strategic look at the country’s long-term financial position and we did get a hint that there would be another statement before the Summer break.
Several tax-related documents were published, however, and we are promised a number of documents in the next few months.
The biggest surprise, which was almost hidden away, is the announcement that “the government will not be mandating Making Tax Digital for any new taxes or business in 2020”.
We had expected that MTD for income tax would start in 2020. It does now look as if there has been a change of heart and HMRC accepts that MTD for income tax is best introduced on a voluntary basis, at least until the robustness of the system has been thoroughly tested. No doubt we will see more detail of this in the coming weeks and months.
Noel Guilford