Lords Finance Bill Committee to take evidence on off-payroll reform
On Monday 10 February 2020 the House of Lords Finance Bill Sub-Committee will hear public evidence on off-payroll reform from two panels of witnesses from professional bodies.
Giving evidence to the Committee at 3.15pm will be:
- Anita Monteith, Tax technical lead and Senior Policy Adviser, Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW)
- Justine Riccomini, Head of Taxation (Scottish Taxes, Employment & ICAS Tax Community), Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS)
- Jason Piper, Head of Tax and Business Law – Professional Insights, Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA).
Questions will include:
- How ready are businesses for the implementation of the proposed off-payroll working rules from April 2020?
- Do businesses have the information, tools, expertise, and advice that they need to make determinations about employment status?
- What lessons have been learned from the implementation of the off-payroll working rules in the public sector?
- Have the costs to business of operating the rules on off-payroll working been accurately assessed?
- Are the proposed exceptions for small businesses sufficiently robust?
Giving evidence to the Committee at 4pm in Committee Room 1 will be:
- Colin Ben-Nathan, Chair, Employment Taxes Committee, Chartered Institute of Taxation (CIOT)
- Meredith McCammond, Technical Officer and Chartered Tax Adviser, Low Incomes Tax Reform Group (LITRG).
Qustions will include:
- Are the proposed rules for determining status as a deemed employee or self-employed sufficiently clear?
- Is the Check Employment Status for Tax (CEST) tool able to reach correct decisions?
- Could there be a shift away from Personal Service Companies to umbrella arrangements once the proposed reforms have been implemented?
- Are there better ways in which the Government might achieve its objectives?
- How should employment law and the tax rules around employment status be aligned?
These evidence sessions, which are open to the public, will begin at 3.15pm on Monday 10 February 2020 in Committee Room 1 of the House of Lords.
Earlier this week the House of Lords Finance Bill Sub-Committee launched its inquiry on the draft Finance Bill 2019–20.
In scrutinising the draft Bill, the Committee will focus on the Government's proposal to extend the off-payroll working rules – which were introduced for the public sector in 2017 – to large and medium-sized organisations in the private sector from April 2020.
