The Government has announced its intention to merge the Inland Revenue and HM Customs and Excise departments into a single department, to be called HM Revenue and Customs, in line with the recommendations of the O'Donnell report ('Financing Britain's future: review of the Revenue departments, Cm 6163; ISBN 0101616325) published in March 2004. The Committee's report examines the case for merger; expected costs and benefits; risks; legislation: confidentiality and powers of the new department; tax policy-making; and ministerial accountability. The Committee supports the decision in principle and looks forward to a detailed analysis of expected costs and benefits being carried out as soon as practicable, and also supports the introduction of new accountability arrangements. However, the fact that the Executive Chairman will report to three Treasury Ministers on various aspects of the new department's work appears unnecessarily cumbersome, and recommends that this should be reviewed in light of practice once the new department has been created.

On cover: Annual report and accounts 2003-04/ HM Customs & Excise