MEMORANDUM
FROM RICHARD
TAYLOR
I am writing in response to your call for examples
of the Government's poor use of language.
I would like to draw your attention to the HMRC's
description of their online forms for self assessment taxation
as software:
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/sa/software.htm[2]
I feel that the use of the word "software",
while not technically inaccurate, suggests that software has to
be downloaded and run on the users' computer. This confusion is
amplified by the fact that the HMRC directly compare their "software",
which is in reality an online form, with commercial software which
has to be purchased and installed on the users' computer.
One cannot easily find out that the HMRC "software"
is in fact simply an online form until after signing up for the
service.
I believe that if this was corrected then more
people would fill in their self-assessment tax forms online, which
ought, assuming rational systems being in place, reduce the costs
of collecting tax. I have written to the HMRC many times on this
point. I have never had a reply, but they have on occasion started
using the term "online software" perhaps as a minor,
insufficient, effort to act on the suggestion.
Other commonly used phrases which exemplify
poor use of language by the Government:
— Anti-Social Behaviour; this is too often
used to refer to real crimes (such as driving scooters without
helmets, licenses or insurance) as well as criminal damage. It
results in such offences being unreasonably treated together with
things some consider problematic such as youths gathering outside
shops on their way home from school.
— Specially Trained Units; non-firearms
police officers who are to be trained in the use of the TASERs
they are soon to be issued with are described as "Specially
Trained Units", often abbreviated to STUs. This is misleading
as it suggests these officers have had more training with TASER
and experience of situations where force might need to be used
than is the case. STUs are individual normal response police officers
who have been issued a TASER and given a few hours training on
its use.
— Laid before Parliament; this process
is not what it sounds like. Having secondary legislation "laid
before Parliament" does not mean it is discussed, debated
and approved by both houses of Parliament. Often government ministers
and departments imply that is what it does mean, and this is very
misleading. In practice though there is no debate, and "laid
before Parliament" doesn't even mean published and drawn
attention to on the Parliamentary website. As far as I can tell
the usual procedure is for the "Merits of Statutory Instruments
Committee" to determine "that the special attention
of the House need not be drawn to [the secondary legislation]"
which is then considered approved without debate or a vote. There
does not appear to be an accessible procedure for MPs to force
a debate and vote.
— Regional Assembly; suggests a body of
elected individuals, however many members are unelected.
— Television Licence; "Television
Licences" are required for all equipment capable of watching
live TV, this now includes many computers, mobile phones and other
devices so the term is now out of line with technology.
— Investment; the Government far too often
uses the term "Investment" when in-fact what is being
described is spending.
March 2009
APPENDIX
HMRC "SOFTWARE YOU CAN USE FOR YOUR
TAX RETURN" WEBPAGE
SOFTWARE YOU
CAN USE
FOR YOUR
TAX RETURN
When you file online your figures are calculated
automatically and you'll know right away what you owe or what
is owed to you. You can use our free Self Assessment Online software
or commercial software (some are also free). Some supplementary
pages aren't supported by our service, but are provided by commercial
software.
— What's covered by HM Revenue & Customs
(HMRC) free, online service.
— What's covered by commercial software.
— Filing trust and estate returns online.
— Completing your online tax return in
parts.
— Before you can send us your tax return
online.
— Tax returns you can't file online.
WHAT'S
COVERED BY
HM REVENUE & CUSTOMS
(HMRC) FREE, ONLINE
SERVICE
You can send us the main Self Assessment Tax
Return (SA100) online free of charge using our online service.
You can also file the following supplementary pages online now:
— Individual partnership—to report
your share of a partnership's profit or loss.
As well as sending your tax return online you
can view and/or amend your contact details online and use a secure
email channel to ask us a question (see "HMRC online support"
below). You can also see your latest Statement of Account and
account history online to find out:
— what you owe, what you've paid and any
repayments due;
— when your tax return was received; and
— when your next tax return is due.
Bear in mind that our software only offers the
supplementary pages listed above. If you want to send other pages
online you'll need to use commercial software (see "What's
covered by commercial software" below).
HMRC's Self Assessment online filing service—find
out more about the benefits and how to register
WHAT'S
COVERED BY
COMMERCIAL SOFTWARE
You can file the following tax returns online
using software from commercial suppliers (some of this software
is free and some you have to pay for):
— SA100—Individual Tax Return (also
completed if you're self-employed).
— SA800—The Partnership Tax Return.
— SA900—The Trust and Estate Tax
Return (see "Filing trust and estate returns online"
below).
The commercial software products also allow
you to file some or all of the following supplementary pages online:
— Individual partnership.
— Additional information.
Follow the link below for a list of commercial
software that we have tested and that is compatible with our Self
Assessment online filing service. We don't recommend any one particular
product or service over another, so you'll have to choose for
yourself. When you compare suppliers, you could look at things
such as their extra features, ease of use and quality of support.
List of commercial software compatible with
Self Assessment online
FILING TRUST
AND ESTATE
RETURNS ONLINE
The system for filing trust and estate returns
online is slightly different from other methods of Self Assessment
online. Find out more by following the link below.
The Trust and Estate Tax Return: paper or online
COMPLETING YOUR
ONLINE TAX
RETURN IN
PARTS
You don't have to fill in your online tax return
all in one go. You can fill in part of it then save it and come
back later. You can also print it out if you want to.
If you use HMRC software, your work is saved
securely on our system. Only you will be able to get at it, no
one else (inside or outside HMRC) can look at your return until
you've submitted it.
If you use commercial software, you may be able
to save your work on your own computer. If this feature's important
to you, check that it's available before you choose your software.
BEFORE YOU
CAN SEND
US YOUR
TAX RETURN
ONLINE
Whichever software you choose, before you can
send us your tax return online, you'll need to register and enrol
to use the online service—allow at least seven days to do
this. You'll need to have your Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR)
to hand (find this on your tax return or Statement of Account)
plus either your National Insurance number or your postcode.
For full details please see our article "Self
Assessment Online". If you wish to register and enrol now
you can use the link below.
Self Assessment Online—find out more about
the benefits and how to register
Self Assessment online—register and
enrol now
TAX RETURNS
YOU CAN'T
FILE ONLINE
There is currently no software available for
filing the following returns:
You have to send us these as paper returns.
Because there is no online service available, the deadline for
these paper returns is the same as for online returns—31
January.
Self assessment deadlines—find out more
Self Assessment for trustees of registered
pensions schemes
HMRC ONLINE SUPPORT
The Online Services Helpdesk supports HMRC's
software (but not software from other suppliers). You can contact
the helpdesk by phone on 0845 6055 999 or by minicom on 0845 366
7805. It is open seven days a week from 8.00 am to 8.00 pm (closed
on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year's Day). You can also
contact the helpdesk by email at the address below:
2 See appendix. Back
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