Ten loan charge suicides must be investigated by Independent Office for Police Conduct, say MPs

The letter from the APPG to Tom Whiting, the interim director general of the IOPC, states that the current process is clearly failing to identify the reasons for these suicides or helping to prevent further tragedies.

The letter which has been signed by the APPG co-chairs, Sammy Wilson MP and Greg Smith MP, states: “The tenth suicide was confirmed in a letter from Jim Harra (Chief Executive and First Permanent Secretary of HMRC) to Chair of the Treasury Select Committee, Harriet Baldwin MP dated January 6. HMRC have stated that they referred themselves to the Independent Office for Police conduct for cases where an individual has taken their own lives and has been facing HMRC action for use of what they call a ‘disguised remuneration’ scheme.

"However HMRC have confirmed that the IOPC has simply referred the cases back to HMRC themselves for them to investigate and that the IOPC has not investigated these cases.”

The MPs say this information is contained in a letter from the Freedom of Information & Data Protection Team which states: “The IOPC has not carried out a directed or independent investigation into a case of apparent suicide or attempted suicide referred by HMRC since September 2018”.

The letter says that HMRC have also confirmed in a statement to the online news service Contractor UK that none of the 10 confirmed suicides have been investigated by the IOPC “and that all 10 have been referred back to HMRC for internal investigation”.

The letter added: “We wish to know why the IOPC has not investigated any of these suicides, especially when there have now been 10 all linked to the same legislation and HMRC’s enforcement of it. This suggests that the IOPC have failed to make the link between the suicides and the fact that they have all involved HMRC action related to the loan charge.”

The letter added: "The referrals to the IOPC are frequently cited by HMRC and the Treasury to exonerate HMRC of any fault, when the real issue is obvious; the despair caused by unaffordable and unfair demands being made of people, the sense of injustice at the retrospective nature of the action and their inability to challenge it; and the way they have been made to feel criminalised.”

The letter also states: “The suicide risk amongst those facing the Loan Charge is well known and documented. There have been numerous media articles referring to it. It is clear the demands HMRC are making of people – which are both unaffordable and unreasonable – and the way HMRC’s approach is making people feel criminalised are causing suicidal thoughts and intent. We have just recently had contact from two individuals reporting that they feel suicidal due to HMRC’s pursuit of them.”

"In a call for evidence last year, of 555 people who submitted evidence forms, a deeply troubling 15 per cent said they had expressed suicidal thoughts or feelings as a direct result of the situation they are in, facing the Loan Charge/associated HMRC action.”

"Even more worryingly, in a survey carried out by the Loan Charge Action Group in September 2020, a staggering 40 per cent of the 662 respondents reported thoughts of suicide as a result of the Loan Charge and HMRC activity in respect of seeking settlement.”

"The APPG has had direct contact from three of the families of those who have committed suicide facing the Loan Charge and two advisers whose clients had killed themselves. In all these cases, the families and the advisers were clear that the Loan Charge and the way HMRC were pursuing them was the reason for the death of their loved one or client.”

An IOPC spokesman said: “We have received the letter from the All-Party Parliamentary Group and appreciate the concerns they have raised. We will be replying to them fully as soon as we are able.

“Since March 2019, we have received a number of referrals relating to individuals who had been subject to HMRC investigation.

"After careful assessment, in some cases we decided HMRC should investigate to determine if its contact with an individual as a vulnerable customer was appropriate.

"We returned other referrals to HMRC to proceed with as they consider necessary. We intend to explain our role, remit, and rationale for our decisions in our written response.”

A Government spokesperson previously said that the loan charge targeted tax avoidance schemes that sought to avoid income tax and National Insurance contributions by paying earnings in the form of loans.

There was an outcry after workers including locum doctors and nurses were hit with large, unexpected tax bills following the introduction of the loan charge. MPs uncovered evidence that the “vast majority” of people entered these schemes after taking professional advice and not with the intention of avoiding paying tax.

The Government said that “significant changes” were made to the loan charge following Lord Morse's review in 2019 which reduced its impact.

A spokesman said recently: “HMRC takes the wellbeing of all taxpayers very seriously and recognises that large tax liabilities can add significant pressures for some people. For those who may need specialised help, HMRC advisers encourage them to contact organisations such as Samaritans or Mind.”

A spokesman for HMRC said that, as the APPG letter is about the conduct of the IOPC, HMRC did not wish to comment.