The UK panel of lawmakers which recently called on a one-year delay to sweeping regulatory reforms has turned its guns on another target – the UK tax revenue agency, saying its service falls far short of acceptable standards.

HM Revenue & Customs is hard to contact during “peak periods”; there are “endemic delays” in responding to mail and its focus on online communications puts those without reliable internet access at a disadvantage, the House of Commons Treasury Select Committee said in a report.

The TSC said it found “there is considerable dissatisfaction among the public and tax professionals with the service provided by the department. The committee is concerned that if this continues it may undermine respect for the tax system”.

HMRC did not immediately comment although it is understood that the organisation will comment in a few days' time. 

The criticisms come at a time when the agency has, for example, been campaigning to crack down on tax evasion and forms of avoidance and has sought to repatriate illicit funds stashed in certain offshore financial centres, such as Liechtenstein. HMRC was created in 2005 by the-then Labour government, melding the old Inland Revenue and Her Majesty’s Customs and Excise.

“The committee recognised that the department performs a crucial role and operates under significant external pressures including continuing resource reductions, deficiencies in tax legislation and the legacy of the merger. It acknowledged the commitment of management to tackling these problems and the dedication and professionalism of HMRC staff. However, it concluded that the department has a difficult few years ahead of it, as it attempts to improve its service to taxpayers and benefits claimants, stabilise the PAYE system and introduce real-time information,” the TSC report said.

Among its recommendations, the TSC said the HMRC should improve the service provided by contact centres, particularly in relation to escalating complex queries and providing alternatives to 0845 numbers; provide robust alternative to online contact, including more cost-effective ways of providing face-to-face advice, and ensure greater awareness of the impact of process changes on individuals and businesses, in particular recommending senior staff spend time with tax practices, charities and businesses.

A week ago, the TSC urged the Financial Services Authority, the UK's financial regulator, to delay the start of its Retail Distribution Review programme of reforms to financial advisors by a year. The RDR is due to kick in by the start of 2013. The FSA has rejected the committee's request.