On Tuesday HMRC said they would close their self-assessment helpline and direct any callers to online services. It had been under intense criticism of its services particularly for the long telephone helpline waiting times. On Wednesday, the decision was reversed! HMRC chief executive Jim Harra has said: "We've listened to the feedback and we're halting the helpline changes as we recognise more needs to be done to ensure all taxpayers' needs are met, whilst also encouraging them to transition to online services." Tuesday’s closure announcement was immediately met with widespread criticism from tax professionals and MPs. More than 12 million people are required to complete self-assessment forms yearly, with hundreds of thousands ringing for assistance. They had proposed only opening the VAT helpline for five business days every month ahead of the deadline for filing VAT returns. But these proposed changes will all be halted and phone lines will remain open from April to September. W...