News story: New Director General of Customer Strategy and Tax Design announced

Ruth is currently Director for Customs and Indirect Tax, and will take over her new role from interim Director General David Richardson on his planned retirement later this summer.

Ruth said:

I’m absolutely delighted to have this opportunity to lead Customer Strategy and Tax Design and join HMRC’s Executive Committee. I know first-hand what important work our group does every day to help create the best possible tax, customs and payment systems for the UK. HMRC’s work to raise revenue to fund vital public services is hugely motivating to me, and my decision in 2016 to join the department was definitely one of the best I ever made.

Thanks to Jim Harra, David, our senior team and so many others across the group, we already have great foundations to build on. I’m keen that over the months ahead we go further in bringing customer insight to the heart of all our work on policy and design, and continue to strengthen our policy partnership with HM Treasury. I’m really looking forward to discussing with teams across the group how we can best approach this next stage together and help make the group an even better place to work.

Chief Executive Jon Thompson said:

Ruth was an exceptional candidate and is absolutely the right person to take forward this important role following David’s retirement in July. I’m grateful to David for his leadership over the last few months and look forward to welcoming Ruth to the team in the next few weeks.

Ruth joined HMRC as Director of Indirect Tax in March 2016, and has led on Customs and Indirect Tax since early 2017. Since joining the Civil Service in the 1990s, she has led a range of policy work in different departments including the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG), the Department for Transport and the Department of Health.

While at DCLG Ruth worked on housing policy, including leading work to prevent homelessness and repossessions at the time of the credit crunch, for which she was awarded an OBE. She lives in central London with her husband and two sons.