The 'Covid President' signs off

The Covid President

Dear friends and colleagues in Tax

It appears that I am set to go down in the Institute’s history books as “The Covid President”, so it is perhaps fitting that I am spending the last two weeks of my Presidential tenure having caught Covid for the first time and now recovering from it. Thank goodness for the protection given by the vaccination programme.

Since I picked up the Presidential baton in November 2020, we have indeed been living in menacing times. I was very fortunate to have Glyn Fullelove as my immediate past-president - he left the Institute in great shape after helping to negotiate many challenges faced by us in the early part of the pandemic. 

One of these changes was the Covid (Transitional Presidential Term) Regulations  2020, which have seen both Glyn and I serve an 18 month presidential term. The hope was that at least I would see some face to face action towards the end of my Presidency, which I am pleased to say I have.  But, looking back, my Presidency has been truly shaped by the pandemic. We have - almost totally- engaged with our students, members, HMRC and the Treasury, our fantastic volunteers and all other stakeholders using virtual on-line technology.

And I do feel that I have met far more students and members virtually than I would have done in ‘normal’ times, such is the powerful reach of the internet where distance and time are no longer obstacles to attending meetings and events.

And while we are now slowly resuming face to face meetings and events, everyone accepts that, as we move forward, online events and meetings are here to stay.

Transforming our engagement

We have had to quickly adapt and transform the Institute’s various activities, offerings and our engagement with our members, our stakeholders and the general public.

• 2021 saw a new high of more than six million visitors to Low Income Tax Reform Group – or LITRG websites. Well over a million of these visits were for the group’s superb covid-19 guidance pages. We can be justly be very proud of LITRG – who is always listened to by Government and HMRC – they have truly excelled in being a strong voice for the unrepresented low income groups.
• We originally decided that the roll-out of online examinations was at least four years away, but we had to act speedily when the pandemic hit us. I am very proud to say that we successfully launched the first of our online CTA exams from mid-2020 onwards and they are now here to stay.
• We have witnessed a record number of students sit a record number of CTA exams and a record number of new members joining -  taking the total CIOT membership to over 19,000. A record number of ADIT exams were sat too. Many congratulations to all concerned – and it was great to finally do TWO bumper-packed face to face admission ceremonies at Drapers Hall earlier this month.
• We have been delighted with the successful launch of virtual CIOT conferences and branch seminars and events, and these have attracted record numbers of delegates
• I have also been told 2021 was a record year for our meetings with HMRC and other policymakers. The official count is that we attended 364 such meetings during the year.

Support for the tax charities

One of the great strengths of the CIOT, and one reason why I am so proud to belong to it, is that we are here to help everyone with their tax. And that includes those who can’t afford to pay for tax advice.

Many vulnerable people with tax problems also need personal advice and this is where TaxAid and Tax Help for Older People come in.

Every day, the two charities help people who are facing real difficulties with their taxes. The advice and assistance the two charities offer can often be life changing for their clients - taking away from them the stress and sleepless nights they will have experienced. The help they give resolves the issue and lets them get on with their lives.

We strongly support these two charities both as an organisation and individually. This goes for me personally and all of my recent Presidents. And I know that Susan will carry on this tradition.

The charities do a fantastic job. Many of you are also personal supporters. If you would like to support in any way – for example as a volunteer or through a donation – please contact Helen Whiteman or me and we will put you in touch.

Heartfelt appreciation

I shall not keep you much longer but I cannot ‘sign-off’ without expressing my sincere thanks to the large number of friends and colleagues that have supported and helped me in my Presidential role.

I want to give special thanks to Helen Whiteman (CIOT Chief Executive Officer), my fellow officers, Glyn Fullelove (Immediate Past President), Susan Ball (Deputy President), Gary Ashford (Vice-President), our CIOT Council members, our ATT friends including past president Jeremy Cooker and president Richard Todd. My sincere appreciation also goes to the fantastic CIOT executive team - including Roz Baxter,John Cullinane, George Crozier, Karl Cerski, Emma Barklamb, Lisa Drakely, Salema Hafiz and the rest of our dedicated CIOT staff. And also I cannot thank enough our wonderful army of volunteers.

All these amazing people have provided me with such wonderful and friendly support during the last 18 months. I am so proud of all the great things we have done together – it is truly a team effort

I also thank my mentors including past presidents Ray McCann and the late Chris Jones, and many others who have always been there for me. There is insufficient space to name everyone – but you know who you are. I also appreciate the encouragement of all our members – it has been great to see so many of you ‘virtually’.

Heartfelt thanks must also go to my wife, Patricia Caputo-Rayney, who has given me her enthusiastic and indefatigable support throughout my Presidential term.

My successor – Susan Ball

I have to say that I have been truly humbled and honoured to have served as your President through these challenging and yet motivating times. I have had the pleasure of speaking to many inspirational people at our events and it’s been a blast!

I spoke earlier about the temporary 18 month Covid term for my presidency. I am pleased to tell you that, as great tax professionals, we have now successfully re-aligned our Presidential basis period back to its normal May year-end. It’s not MTD compliant but you can’t have everything!

It is with great pleasure that I now hand you over to your new President, our 57^th President, Susan Ball. Susan is a Partner at RSM who -  despite her youthful looks - has over 30 years' experience working in the employment taxes field, advising local, national and global businesses. I know Susan will be a fantastic and passionate President and I wish you all the very best Susan for the forthcoming year.

Take very good care of yourselves! 

Thank you…