61.5% of senior staff at HMRC over 50

HMRC has been warned about its ageing workforce with 61.5% of senior civil servants at the tax authority being over 50 years old, compared to 55% being under 40 at the Treasury, with digital skills lacking at HMRC due to its age profile.

The Institute for Government’s Whitehall Monitor 2018 report highlights the lack of younger civil servants at HMRC, showing it to be one of the departments with the highest age profile, coming second to the Ministry of Defence (MoD).

HMRC along with the MoD, Department for Work and Pensions and Ministry of Justice, make up the larger departments in Whitehall. These departments all have a higher average employee age which in turn is driving the overall civil service age profile up. According to HMRC, the average age of its employees is 45.