Church and State blog: Independent Police Complaints Commission: My complaint to IPCC Chair Dame Anne Owers about the handling of my appeal against the HM Revenue and Customs investigation of serious misconduct (WITH UPDATE 16/10/2017)

Wednesday, October 11, 2017

Independent Police Complaints Commission: My complaint to IPCC Chair Dame Anne Owers about the handling of my appeal against the HM Revenue and Customs investigation of serious misconduct (WITH UPDATE 16/10/2017)

Re: Blocks on public access to our Church and State website since 26 July 2016

From my earlier blog post's Update 28 September (11.16pm):

"And it's not just Facebook blocks, blocks on public access to our Church and State website and the daily targeting to fluctuating degrees of category pages throughout the site that Declan and I are dealing with these days. We have also been dealing with Internet cuts since 26 May. See my blog post of 21 June, Internet cuts: We pay £65 per month for BT Infinity but feel we are in a race against time to stay online (WITH UPDATE 28/9/2017 RE: 163rd Internet cut since 26 May 2017)."

16 October (10.41pm): 809 blocks on public access to our Church and State website since 26 July 2016.* See my blog post of 16 January, The blocks on public access to our Church and State website continue unabated (WITH UPDATE 16/10/2017 RE: 809th block since 26 July 2016). 74 blocks last month that included 7 blocks on 16 September; 32 blocks this month; 21 blocks two weeks ago that included 6 blocks on 4 October; 8 blocks last week; 2 blocks so far today (as of 16 October at 10.41pm).

1. 736th 16 September 2017, 1.35am
2. 737th 16 September 2017, 6.01am
3. 738th 16 September 2017, 12.07pm
4. 739th 16 September 2017, 12.55pm
5. 740th 16 September 2017, 1.28pm
6. 741st 16 September 2017, 2.46pm
7. 742nd 16 September 2017, 9.34pm (7)
-------------------------------------------------
48. 783rd 4 October 2017, 1.31am
49. 784th 4 October 2017, 8.01am
50. 785th 4 October 2017, 10.03am
51. 786th 4 October 2017, 12.08pm
52. 787th 4 October 2017, 6.41pm
53. 788th 4 October 2017, 8.35pm (6)
-------------------------------------------------
73. 808th 16 October 2017, 7.10pm
74. 809th 16 October 2017, 9.33pm (2)

* An unprecedented escalation of 52 blocks in one week at the end of April 2017 that kicked off with our focus on the Danish Cartoon Crisis.

The War on Free Expression

From the IPCC website: "If you are appealing against the investigation into your complaint, you will have received a letter from us acknowledging that we have received it and giving an indication of the likely time it will take for us to consider your appeal."

The police complaints system extends to a small number of organisations that are not police forces, including HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC). Declan and I are currently waiting to hear from the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) regarding my appeal of 23 September against the investigation by HMRC into my complaint about serious misconduct by HMRC staff. I have not only taken issue with HMRC Pay As You Earn and Self Assessment updating my address on 11 July without my permission (and the detrimental effect this could have had on us in terms of the possible suspension of our Housing Benefit), but also their subsequent closure of my Self Assessment account based upon fabricated hearsay evidence which no independent judiciary would accept. According to the IPCC website, quoted above, I should have heard back from the Commission by now. This evening I cc'd my complaint to IPCC Chair Dame Anne Owers, who has responsibility for ensuring the Commission meets its statutory responsibilities as a public body and is accountable to the Home Secretary. This email also summarises my appeal to the IPCC on 23 September in case I have to escalate the matter to the Home Office:

For the attention of Dame Anne Owers, Chairman, Independent Police Complaints Commission

Lesley Longstone
Chief Executive
Independent Police Complaints Commission

Address removed for email

11 October 2017

IPCC reference: 2017/091737
HMRC reference: CETO/16936/2017

Dear Ms Longstone,

On 23 September 2017 I appealed to the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) against the investigation by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) into my complaint dated 12 August 2017, which the IPCC forwarded to the Professional Standards Department of HMRC. Please find attached a snapshot of the online acknowledgement I received immediately following my submission of my completed IPCC appeal form dated 23 September 2017.

The IPCC website states: "If you are appealing against the investigation into your complaint, you will have received a letter from us acknowledging that we have received it and giving an indication of the likely time it will take for us to consider your appeal." I have evidently appealed to the IPCC against the investigation by HMRC into my complaint about serious misconduct by HMRC staff. However, I have yet to receive the IPCC's letter acknowledging that you have received my appeal and giving an indication of the likely time it will take for the IPCC to consider the matter.

Please also find attached the final decision letter from HMRC. You will note that HMRC Internal Governance have made the decision that "there is no criminal action by any HMRC officer or readily identifiable potential gross misconduct matter". On 12 August 2017 I not only complained to the IPCC about HMRC Pay As You Earn (PAYE) and Self Assessment updating my address on 11 July 2017 without my permission, but I also complained about the then subsequent closure of my Self Assessment account based upon fabricated hearsay evidence which no independent judiciary would accept. I disagree with the findings of HMRC's investigation because I feel that they haven't made the right decision based on all the evidence.

Firstly, I have taken issue with the updating of my address by HMRC PAYE and Self Assessment on 11 July 2017 without my permission. By email of 9 July 2017, I specifically informed HMRC PAYE and Self Assessment that my address had not changed and that such an update could result in the suspension of my husband's Housing Benefit. Nonetheless, HMRC PAYE and Self Assessment updated my address against my expressed wishes and with no regard for the detrimental effect this could have had on myself and my husband. By letter of 19 July 2017, Newham Council Benefits Service specifically informed my husband that the suspension of his Housing Benefit would be automatic should they receive notification of a change in my circumstance from either HMRC or the Department for Work and Pensions as a result of this update.

Secondly, I have taken issue with the then subsequent closure of my Self Assessment account by HMRC PAYE and Self Assessment based initially upon fabricated hearsay evidence. In a letter of 24 July 2017, HMRC PAYE and Self Assessment Customer Service Manager John Fitzpatrick wrote: "We previously asked you to complete Self Assessment tax returns because you told us that you would receive self-employed income. However, your 2015-16 return only included income of £2,967 from Network for Church Monitoring and as you had told us that this was PAYE income, we have closed your Self Assessment record." I have never told HMRC that I am self-employed, which I am not. I have also never told HMRC that my income as an employee of Network for Church Monitoring is PAYE income, which it is not (as untaxed earnings to date).

HMRC explain in their final decision letter that their update on 11 July 2017 "was to confirm your address as 71 Queens Road West, Plaistow, London E13 0PE, which we had previously noted in October 2014". I do not find this explanation in any way reassuring when it comes to ensuring that my address will only be updated again by HMRC in the event HMRC PAYE and Self Assessment receive written confirmation from me. Further, HMRC PAYE and Self Assessment have reopened my Self Assessment account and updated their records to show that I am not self-employed, but they have been unable to provide me with any written evidence to support Mr Fitzpatrick's assertions in his letter of 24 July 2017. In fact, no reference is made to this letter from Mr Fitzpatrick in the final decision letter from HMRC.

I am looking for the IPCC to uphold my complaint against HMRC as a serious misconduct matter taking into account: (1) the updating of my address on 11 July 2017 without my permission (notwithstanding the potential detrimental effect of this on myself and my husband), and (2) the then subsequent closure of my Self Assessment account based initially upon fabricated hearsay evidence which no independent judiciary would accept. Mr Fitzpatrick's letter of 24 July 2017 is enclosed with my completed appeal form, and is also attached to this email for your convenience.

Please would you provide me with the IPCC's letter acknowledging that you have received my appeal and giving an indication of the likely time it will take for the IPCC to consider this matter.

Yours sincerely,

Maria Heavey
Webmaster
Network for Church Monitoring

"Let me recommend an important web site - churchandstate.org.uk. Operating out of London this well-designed and exciting web site covers church-state, population, climate change and other issues. Check it out." Edd Doerr, President, Americans for Religious Liberty

UPDATE 16 October (10.46pm): No letter from the IPCC despite my complaint above on 11 October. It's not inconceivable that our case against HMRC will see the inside of a courtroom in the New Year, particularly if we cannot secure our home address with them. HMRC are well aware that government departments share information relating to customer's personal details. Because of this, updates made by one department to a customer's address can flow to their records held by another department; not only that, but it can mean a quick suspension of Housing Benefit, which could run up hundreds in arrears in the space of a few weeks. The last time our Housing Benefit was suspended following an address update on the HMRC website, Declan was forced to take even quicker action with this High Court pre-action letter to the Chief Executive of Newham Council:

Click to enlarge

We are well familiar with the IPCC. For example, Declan complained to the IPCC about the police investigation into the removal of our flat door in 2012. It was the IPCC's finding on that occasion that since our then landlady had subsequently signed an undertaking to the County Court promising not to harass us, there was no requirement for the Metropolitan Police Service to take further action.

Re: Removal of our flat door

Paragraph 23(ii) of Declan's updated complaint to the United Nations under Article 19 (freedom of expression) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

23(ii) On 21 August 2012, Ms McKenzie signed an undertaking to the County Court promising not to harass the Applicant and his wife following her builder's removal of the door to their flat (see Annex 9, p. 31). The Independent Police Complaints Commission later upheld the Applicant's appeal against the police investigation of the incident "on information only", stating that "no further action is required by the force in this instance".

From My Picks:

9 June: Ministry of Justice: Complaint to the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice against the County Court at Central London, Royal Courts of Justice (WITH UPDATE - Day 13 21/6/2017)

'Let me recommend an important web site churchandstate.org.uk. Operating out of London this well-designed and exciting web site covers church-state, population, climate change and other issues. Check it out.' Edd Doerr, President, Americans for Religious Liberty

Church and State

MAYOR OF LONDON RSI PROPERTY
DAY 406 IN A WEEKLY PERIODIC TENANCY
SUBJECT TO A SECTION 21 NOTICE

(SEE PARA. 3 BELOW)

1. Our 308 Honorary Associates include 20 Nobel Prize laureates. Declan and I are engaged in a project that deals with the publication of issues significant to social policy in a number of key areas, e.g., climate change, population, futurism, atheism, and free speech. Established as Network for Church Monitoring, a non-profit company limited by guarantee, our main publication, found at the website, Church and State, calls attention to subjects, not the least which have been critical of the interaction between religious and secular institutions. We have been the target of numerous threats and actions, e.g., the former resulting in threats to Declan's life, and the latter, which have led to vandalism. The various incidents are on record with the police and other official agencies.

2. There are no less than 63 Nobel Prize laureates on the Church and State website from 20 Honorary Associates, eight articles, nine book excerpts and 33 petition signatories. (For example, one Nobel laureate signed our Nobel petition in support of human embryonic stem cell research and gave us permission to excerpt from one of his books.) Our list of associates also includes 18 US National Medal laureates, and six Turing Award laureates (the equivalent of the Nobel Prize in computer science). We have published one article and excerpted from the books of seven members of the British House of Lords. And there are 31 knighted professors on the site from 13 Honorary Associates, one book excerpt and 21 petition signatories. These figures are despite the never-ending assault on our email (this link reveals the targeting of our emails to, among others, a close colleague in Washington, DC as well as space advocates and Nobel laureates).

3. This is Day 406 for us living under the threat to life of a 'no fault' eviction by Peabody Trust.[1] We live in a Mayor of London's Rough Sleepers Initiative (RSI) property. Peabody's appalling new terms of tenancy have forced us into an unstable weekly periodic tenancy that poses a threat to Declan's life and inhibits our ability to exercise our rights. Declan accumulated quite a history with the Housing Ombudsman Service before he received the Ombudsman's decision not to investigate a referral from Lyn Brown MP on jurisdictional grounds. The Ombudsman was asked to consider whether or not our tenancy has been renewed like for like; and whether, if not, it should be in light of the landlord having accused us of not signing a like-for-like agreement. The Equality and Human Rights Commission will not accept a referral of discrimination from Ms Brown, the Commission's helpline (EASS) having grossly distorted the complaint against Peabody. We no longer have pro se access to the courts (see next paragraph).

4. This eviction matter came before District Judge Ruth Fine at the Central London County Court on 30 June 2020, when both counsel for St Mungo's (the charity in effective control of our tenancy) and Declan presented their positions. Declan lost the case and was ordered to pay £1,850 in costs. A publishing colleague in America cleared these costs within 24 hours of my blog post about this hearing for strike out on a related issue that was the essence of the claim, i.e., that St Mungo's would take a phone call to confirm that we are clients of the Mayor of London's RSI programme. Within a week of the hearing, St Mungo's had agreed to take this phone call for us both, the Court having ruled that they were not obliged to do so despite our circumstances. This time we escaped bankruptcy (counsel for St Mungo's asked for £3,407.50 in costs), but consider that to seek pro se access to justice in the courts has become far too dangerous for us. Declan currently has before the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman the decision of the Information Commissioner that allows St Mungo's to continue processing coercive support plans without our knowledge or consent and that also poses a threat to his life.

5. When it comes to traffic, we have had 10.7 million hits in the past three years on Facebook; however, I left the platform on 13 March 2021 for one year rather than risk being banned for life. It is indisputable that with any sort of level playing field Church and State would have far exceeded 2.5 million hits last year. In addition to a large variety of blocks without explanation, Facebook had so severely restricted our Page's distribution by October 2020 that it was almost as good as an unpublished page.[2] Currently, we are up to their 85th block since 1 December 2015, and as usual without an explanation. This block records as one half of their 3rd double block in the first five weeks of this year that lasted 60 days. Our traffic has also been curtailed by over 2.5K blocks on access to Church and State since 26 July 2016, including 29 full distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks since 17 May 2019 that have lasted for as long as 54 hours at a time.[3] About 70% of our hits are from Americans.

"This is precisely the hard hitting kind of response needed to clarify the unfair way Facebook is treating your highly reputable site." Don Collins, Founder, International Services Assistance Fund, Washington DC

Last updated: 26/06/21

_________________________

[1] Once a fixed term has elapsed, the landlord has the option to seek eviction even if the tenant has upheld their obligations in full (though of course the landlord must still apply for and obtain a county court order).

[2] 17/10/20: We have permission to publish this ISAF letter of 30 September to Facebook COO Sheryl Samberg. Facebook has so severely restricted our Page's distribution since 4 September that it's almost as good as an unpublished page

[3] Since October 2019, we have been defining a full DDoS attack as having such a high volume of up to 4-minute blocks on access to Church and State that we don't bother recording them all.

Church and State blog

Wednesday, October 11, 2017

Independent Police Complaints Commission: My complaint to IPCC Chair Dame Anne Owers about the handling of my appeal against the HM Revenue and Customs investigation of serious misconduct (WITH UPDATE 16/10/2017)

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