Reform UK has pledged to introduce a £30 tax rebate for taxpayers who are kept on hold by HMRC for more than 30 minutes, a proposal that would take effect if the party wins the next general election. The plan, announced by Reform’s Treasury spokesman Robert Jenrick, would offer taxpayers up to two credits per tax year for each call that exceeds the half-hour waiting threshold.
Reform UK’s plan for taxpayer compensation
Under the proposed rule change, taxpayers who spend at least 30 minutes waiting for HMRC to answer their call would receive a £30 rebate, with a maximum of two such credits available in any single tax year. Mr Jenrick framed the policy as a measure to restore fairness to the tax system, saying: “The British people have lost countless hours of their lives stuck on the phone to HMRC. Under Reform, that ends. If HMRC delay you, they can repay you. We will restore basic fairness to the taxpayer.”
Mr Jenrick went on to describe the frustration many people experience when dealing with the tax authority: “We’ve all been stuck waiting on the HMRC phone line, spending hours on hold trying to give them money that you have earned, losing time that you’ll never get back. It’s enough to drive you mad.”
Small business burden and HMRC delays
The Reform spokesman highlighted the wider cost of tax administration, noting that small businesses spend 242 million hours and £25bn on their taxes every year. He added that HMRC fails to answer millions of calls, takes more than a month to reply to letters, and can take two years to process a simple refund.
Asked whether the new rules could backfire, Mr Jenrick insisted his party was “just asking them to do their jobs”. He said: “Answer the phone, respond to emails, be courteous, treat taxpayers with courtesy and respect. It’s not too much to ask for. And if the fat cats who run HMRC and earn hundreds of thousands of pounds every year can’t do that, they’ll be out of a job, and quite right so.”
HMRC response on service improvements
In response, an HMRC spokesman said: “Our customer service performance has improved significantly, with average call wait times now around 11 minutes. Overall customer satisfaction is at around 80 per cent, with more people than ever using our digital services, including millions using the HMRC app.”
The spokesman’s comments indicate that current average wait times are well below the 30-minute threshold proposed by Reform, though the party’s promise remains a key talking point ahead of the next general election.
