This is the second piece of work undertaken by the group, whose chair is Margaret Hodge, the former chair of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC), and will look at customer service experiences and how HMRC fights tax avoidance and evasion as part of its assessment of levels of public confidence and trust in HMRC’s capabilities.

The APPG says ‘trust’ is a difficult term to define precisely, but in this context relates to the ability of HMRC and its staff to effect certain outcomes. In particular, this means collecting tax effectively (that is, reducing the ‘tax gap’ between what is owed and what is collected) and fairly (that is, not wittingly or unwittingly applying rules in an inconsistent manner).

The group says it has identified two particular circumstances that contribute to public trust or distrust in HMRC: the general public’s direct interaction with HMRC through their own tax affairs; and the publicity of HMRC’s success or otherwise in combatting tax evasion and avoidance.

As regards customer interaction, the APPG says while HMRC has taken steps to improve customer service, questions remain around the effectiveness of this investment and the progress HMRC is making in improving its service for normal taxpayers.

Meanwhile, the level of public interest in aggressive tax avoidance and evasion remains significant, with LuxLeaks and Panama Papers highlighting the scale of the challenge HMRC and other revenue bodies around the world face.

The APPG on responsible tax has posted a list of consultation questions on its website, covering customer responsiveness, and the adequacy of HMRC’s resources and skills among other topics, and is inviting responses by 24 October.

The group says it will then invite oral responses and conduct further research before the consultation closes on 23 December.

The AGGP on responsible tax consultation details are here.