Welsh Revenue Authority Board minutes: 30 November 2022

Members

• Ruth Glazzard, Chair
• Dyfed Edwards, Deputy Chair
• Mary Champion, Non-Executive Member
• Jocelyn Davies, Non-Executive Member
• Jim Scopes, Non-Executive Member
• Rheon Tomos, Non-Executive Member
• Dyfed Alsop, Chief Executive/Accounting Officer (CE/AO)
• Becca Godfrey, Services Director
• Karen Athanatos, Staff-Elected Member

1. Welcome and introductions, apologies and conflicts of interest

1. Anna Adams, Welsh Treasury, had sent her apologies.
2. No new interests were reported.

2. Minutes of the last meeting

1. Minutes of the board meeting on 28 September had been circulated in advance and were now agreed. The Board discussed the formulation of Board papers, including Minutes.
2. Matters arising were raised under item 12.

Redacted.

3. Meeting overview

As the Minister would be attending this meeting, the Board discussed the current context which made the Minister’s attendance today particularly timely. The 2023 to 2024 WRA budget, due to be announced in December, was currently being finalised, and decisions were expected shortly on some aspects of WRA work, including the WRA’s roles in the Local Land Transaction Tax and Visitor Levy.

4. The Welsh Government's vision for the WRA, finances, role in visitor levy

1. The Board welcomed Rebecca Evans MS, Minister for Finance and Local Government, to the meeting. The Minister attended for this item only.
2. The Welsh Government (WG) Budget for 2023 to 2024 was due to be announced in December. The Board articulated the WRA’s priorities for the remainder of this financial year and beyond.

Redacted.

5. The Minister and the Board agreed that this had been a very timely and positive discussion, and all shared the motivation to do the best for WG, the WRA and the people of Wales.

6. The Board thanked the Minister for attending, and would write to the Minister to record their thanks and articulate some of the key points raised.

A22-05-02:The Chair would write to the Minister. Officials would draft a letter at the earliest opportunity.

5. CE/AO report

1. As a further indication of WRA’s status as a HMRC Trusted Partner, WRA was now able to work closer with HMRC to identify key behaviours across taxation. This had significant potential.
2. Discussion had moved forward on issues surrounding hybrid working. WRA continued to investigate options, and favoured careful experimentation and staff engagement. Accommodation options were being firmed up and details would be shared with staff soon.

Redacted.

5. The Wellbeing Hour was being used by three-quarters of staff. It was taken seriously, and had many diverse benefits. Wellbeing was an important part of WRA and WG culture. The CE/AO drew attention to the increasing recognition of the importance of wellbeing across workplaces.

Redacted.

6. Chief Finance Officer (CFO) quarterly report and corporate risk register

1. There was strong collective understanding of the budget situation across WRA teams. The CFO thanked the Head of Finance for the high standard of their financial reporting, and work with budget managers to ensure a shared understanding of issues and to help them find solutions. The Board echoed the CFO’s thanks.
2. The WRA budget, because of its small size, had less flexibility to absorb sudden changes than that of a large WG department. The staff body was currently near to full complement and this posed particular challenges.
3. Discussions at ARAC had identified that it would be useful to further develop the risk dashboard, and the need to better delineate service delivery and implementation risks. The CFO commented that the joint approach shared with ARAC had been a helpful opportunity to look at issues with the benefit of external experience.
4. In discussing risk, the board considered the possibility of drawing out sub-classifications of risk level to help indicate changes within a risk over time, whether a new risk reflecting potential future shocks should be included, and risk appetite in general terms.

Redacted.

7. SDLG quarterly report

1. The Services Director and the Head of Data Analysis presented the report, which had been circulated in advance. The report had been prepared following the SDLG meeting at the end of October, to review Q2 performance.

Redacted.

8. Introduction to the afternoon session

The Chair welcomed everyone to the afternoon session.

9. Welsh Treasury report

Redacted.

10. Reports from committees

1. ARAC: The Board noted the content of Minutes of recent meetings which had been circulated in advance.
2. Remuneration Committee: The Board noted the content of Minutes of recent meetings which had been circulated in advance.

11. Hybrid working, culture and ways of working, our principles and approach

1. WRA Staff would meet at an in-person away day in Cathays Park on 12 December. This would be the first all-staff, in-person event since 2019. Hybrid working would be on the day’s agenda.
2. The Board discussed how the WRA’s culture of being innovative, collaborative and kind might meet the future challenges of hybrid workplaces and practices. It was recognised that the culture benefitted the WRA directly but also impacted positively on customers.

Redacted.

12. Any other business

The Board Secretary reported on progress against action points recorded in previous meetings.

A22-05-06: The Board Forward Look would be reinstated for future meetings.

A22-05-07: Board dates from April 2023 would be agreed.

The Board Secretary would take forward both these action points.

13. Chair’s review of the meeting

The Chair thanked all who had been involved in preparing the meeting and reporting to the Board. The Board echoed the Chair’s thanks.

14. Next meeting

The Board would next meet online for a Board Conversation on 14 December, and in person for a Strategy Awayday on 24 and 25 January, and the 2022 to 2023 Q3 review meeting on 22 February.

Redacted information

There are certain circumstances where it is not appropriate to share all of the information contained within the Board minutes, for example, where it contains personal or commercial data or relates to the formulation of government policy or the effective conduct of public affairs. In such circumstances, the information has been redacted and the text is marked clearly that this has been the case.