POLITICIANS and Bradford Council last night said they will not give up the fight to save the district’s tax offices in the face of plans to close them at the cost of about 2,000 jobs.

HMRC’s offices at The Interchange and Centenary Court in the city centre and the Shipley Accounts Office are under intense threat to be replaced by a regional centre in Leeds.

But Council chiefs have learned that HMRC has started an internal review of its plans to set up a national network of regional centres to replace local tax offices after stinging criticism by the National Audit Office (NAO) about the programme which it described as “unrealistic”.

The HMRC is now understood to be re-considering both the scope and timings of the programme which would have led to the district offices closing over the next four years.

Two of the district’s MPs, Philip Davies and Imran Hussain, have joined Council leader Susan Hinchcliffe in urging the HMRC to again consider moving the hub to Bradford.

Councillor Hinchcliffe said the Council had already put forward a “robust argument” for having the centre in Bradford.

She said: “We believed and still do that a centre here would offer the greatest benefits to the Government, taxpayers and the regional economy, particularly since so many are already working here.

“The review offers a chink of light for us to put our case forward once again. It’s great to see the MPs working so hard together, across the political divide, for the good of Bradford district.

“We all want a positive outcome.”

Shipley Conservative MP Mr Davies spoke in the House of Commons earlier this week to ask for Bradford to be the site for the new hub, saying suitable property is “readily available and much cheaper for the taxpayer”.

A site in Leeds has yet to be acquired for the new Yorkshire and the Humber regional centre.

“As far as I’m concerned until the HMRC finds, buys and moves into a site I’m not willing to give up the ghost,” he said last night.

Imran Hussain, Labour MP for Bradford East, said it was not often that he and Mr Davies agree on something, and he also highlighted the benefits of keeping the offices in Bradford.

Speaking in the Commons he pointed to the expertise of the staff in Bradford and asked for assurances they would be retained.

In response, Jane Ellison, financial secretary to the Treasury, said: “I know Bradford was disappointed not to be the chosen site for the regional centre, but it is merely ten minutes from Leeds on the train.

“I hope it will be a realistic move for those that wish to move, and HMRC has provided a detailed response explaining why Leeds was chosen over Bradford.

“We would never wish to lose any experienced staff or expertise from the Bradford office, of all the possible moves Bradford to Leeds is one of the shortest commutes staff would face.

“We would want to retain all the expertise we can.”

Mr Hussain welcomed the Government’s commitment to maintaining the jobs of Bradford-based HMRC staff but said he was still pushing for the regional centre to be in Bradford.

He said: “When the HMRC announced it would be closing their offices in Bradford, there was considerable uncertainty that many jobs would be lost in the process.

“What we have is a clear indication from the Government that they seek to maintain the jobs of staff currently working in Bradford’s HMRC offices.

“While I welcome the Minister’s commitment to maintaining the jobs of staff currently in Bradford, I will be pressing for solid answers on how they and the HMRC will do so.

“I will also be advocating that the Regional Hub instead moves from Leeds to Bradford where it will be much better placed, and pressing them to improve the transport links between the two cities for commuters.”

The NAO report said the HMRC’s plan to develop regional centres was deeply flawed.

It concluded that it carried too high a risk of disruption as it involved moving or replacing too many staff too quickly while delivering 14 other major change programmes in parallel. In addition, estate costs over the next ten years have risen by nearly £600 million.

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