Information age government: Modernising the tax system for all

Revolutionising the way we pay tax by offering services on-line by 2005 is one of the commitments outlined in today's spending plans for the Chancellor's departments.

The Chancellor's departments (including Inland Revenue, Customs and Excise, the Treasury and the Office for National Statistics) have a key role to play in delivering rising prosperity through the creation of economic and employment opportunities for all.

The Spending Review 2000 settlement for the Chancellor's departments provides resources to:

invest in IT systems that will enable all revenue services to be available electronically by 2005;
enhance the quality of national statistics;
implement the new integrated child credit from 2003, key to halving child poverty in the next ten years and the new employment tax credit from 2003, which will increase the gains to work over welfare.

The increase in Customs and Excise's provision takes account of the additional resources, announced in the Budget, for implementing the Government's strategy to reverse the trend in tobacco smuggling. Customs and Excise will also play a key part in ensuring that the availability of Class A drugs is reduced by 25 per cent by 2005.

Paymaster General Dawn Primarolo said:

"I will now be setting the revenue departments challenging targets to deliver a fundamental change in the way that business is conducted. The reforms the money will deliver will make a significant contribution to keeping compliance costs to a minimum, protecting revenue and to improving customer services for those dealing with the departments."

Investment in the Office for National Statistics includes the development of neighbourhood statistics. These will bring together and make easily accessible information from a range of sources, giving a comprehensive picture of an area and describing the social conditions of neighbourhoods in a consistent and coherent manner. This is particularly important as it will provide the means of measuring progress in implementing the Government's Neighbourhood Renewal Strategy.

Economic Secretary Melanie Johnson said:

"Investing in the infrastructure of the Office for National Statistics is crucial to improving the quality of national statistics and will help us better identify needs at a more local level."

Notes for editors

1. Key figures for the Chancellor's Departments and various other bodies are:

£ million	2000-01	2001-02	2002-03	2003-04
Inland Revenue	2271	2461	2646	2664
Customs and Excise	906	1045	1125	1147
HM Treasury	246	212	212	217
Office for National Statistics	136	186	139	126
National Savings	177	176	157	155
Small Departments*	4	4	1	1
Departmental Expenditure Limit * Small Departments covers the Government Actuary's Department, The National Investment and Loans Office and the Registrar of Friendly Societies.

2. For more details contact the Press Offices of the Treasury: 020 7270 5238; Customs and Excise: 020 7865 547; Inland Revenue: 020 7438 7327; Office for National Statistics: 020 7533 5725.