David Davis has called for the "immediate" publication of an independent review into the taxman's controversial loan charge, warning the "unjust and misguided" policy must be debated in parliament.
The MP for Haltemprice and Howden sounded the alarm bells in a letter to Sajid Javid yesterday (December 18) in which he said those affected by the loan charge had "pinned their hopes" on the review commissioned by the chancellor in September.
The independent review was led by Sir Amyas Morse and followed calls from MPs and campaign groups for the retrospective loan charge to be scrapped, with the Treasury since confirming it has received his final report.
The loan charge has been levied since the start of this tax year on those who benefitted from disguised remuneration schemes, used to pay employees via third party companies which "loaned" the money to the worker.
The loans were never intended to be repaid and as such HM Revenue and Customs treated them as tax avoidance, but campaigners have argued many employees had agreed to the schemes only after seeking expert advice.
Mr Davis said delays caused by the general election meant those affected by the policy had waited three months to read the review's findings as they continued to suffer "financial hardship" and "severe mental health issues".
He said: "I therefore urge you to publish the report immediately so that those affected, as well as MPs, can give it due consideration.
"Parliament has to then be given the opportunity to properly and fully debate this unjust and misguided policy."
The former secretary of state for exiting the European Union also asked the payment deadline of 31 January be "immediately suspended" whilst next steps are decided, to give "certainty and peace of mind" to those tax payers facing the loan charge.
Mr Davis added: "If it is not suspended, the loan charge will only continue to cause ruinous hardship to thousands across the country.
"As I have previously said in the chamber, if the government does not take positive action on this the house will be forced to find a legislative route to ensure the Treasury and HMRC cannot engage in retrospective taxation."
On his Twitter page Mr Davis pledged to "continue fighting this retrospective and unjust tax on behalf of my constituents".
A Treasury spokesperson said: "We have received Sir Amyas Morse’s report into the loan charge. We are considering his report as a matter of urgency, and will update on next steps in due course."
It is not the first time an MP has urged action on the policy, with an All-Party Parliamentary Group warning last month the attitude of HMRC towards the loan charge was "wreaking havoc" on taxpayers.
There have been reports of homelessness and suicides in connection with the controversial retrospective tax, with the taxman reporting itself to the police watchdog four times over the deaths of individuals who had been notified of a loan charge bill.
HMRC at the time maintained it had put in more resources to deal with the numbers of scheme users who have shown an interest in settling their affairs and was helping in a number of ways.
It said: "We know that large tax assessments can cause worry and anxiety so we have put in place dedicated resources, including specially trained HMRC officers, to support customers.
"We have also set up a disguised remuneration helpline, which can provide details for vulnerable customers of organisations such as the Samaritans and Mind as appropriate, and we are committed to time to pay arrangements in respect of the loan charge, which can run for as long as the taxpayer needs."
rachel.mortimer@ft.com
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