Revenue stays tight-lipped on IR591 plans

The Revenue met last week with representatives of various professional bodies, such as the Chartered Institute of Taxation and the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, and the topic of IR591 was raised again.

Apparently the professional bodies urged the Revenue not to introduce IR591 without proper consultation and a reasonable period to enable those affected by the proposals to plan for the changes. The Revenue indicated that their plans have not yet been finalised and that there is still time for further representations to be made.

However the Revenue gave no assurances that there would be any detailed consultation and it appears that the Revenue is playing its cards close to its chest as far as giving away any details.

Someone who was at the meeting said that they came away feeling unsure as to whether the lack of details is because the Revenue, literally, have not yet developed any detailed plans as yet or because their political masters have made it very clear that no details are to be discussed with anyone.

It seems likely that the changes will be effective from 5 April 2004, although the professional bodies are arguing strongly that introducing measures without proper consultation and a period of appropriate transition was a recipe for disaster.

So it seems likely that we will have to wait until next month's budget before we get any idea of what is in store for small businesses. Once again this leaves many small businesses feeling very uncertain about their future.

It cannot help but reinforce the view that many have that the Government neither understands nor cares about the problems faced by small businesses or the stresses that trying to run a small business involves.

Kevin Miller, MA FCA