To anybody working in tax right now, the old Lenin chestnut about there being “decades where nothing happens, and there are weeks when decades happen” must seem eerily apposite. Whether it’s the government’s tax reforms, tech upheavals caused by AI and Making Tax Digital or yet more changes to the UK’s complex tax legislation, tax specialists will have a lot on their plates over the next few years.

Here to help them is Katie Close CA. The new ICAS Director of Tax will represent the organisation’s members at government and HMRC meetings to ensure their views are heard, as well as guiding them through an increasingly labyrinthine tax system.

Close has enjoyed a meteoric career. Since starting in 2012 at Grant Thornton, where she did her CA training, she’s held an array of tax management roles at Clydesdale Bank, power generator supplier Aggreko and drilling firm KCA Deutag, and as Group Head of Tax for Systal Technology Solutions.

Close joined ICAS in November and with a much-discussed UK Budget in her in-tray within her first fortnight, she’s expecting a busy first year.

Tax wasn’t a subject people discussed when I was younger. I grew up with just me and my mum, who was a nurse, in council estates on the outskirts of Glasgow. My background has made me passionate about work such as the ICAS Foundation, which gives opportunities to talented young people who haven’t had them.

I once spent a year volunteering in Lithuania. I worked with troubled teenagers who had family or drug and alcohol problems. It was one of the hardest years of my life, but also one of the best and most transformative. 

My degree was in English literature and Slavonic studies – nothing to do with tax or accountancy at all. I can’t say I’ve used the Polish I studied much since university either.

Speaking to Grant Thornton at a careers fair made me decide to train as a CA. At the time I was weighing up doing a PhD. But they outlined what an interesting career being a tax specialist would be, so I changed tack and applied for the firm’s graduate scheme.

I’m drawn to tax because it’s essentially one big problem-solving activity with lots of different answers.

Three years after joining Grant Thornton I won an ICAS gold medal for my exam performance. The exams were stressful but winning made me feel I’d made the right career choice.

I’m proud to be a CA. The designatory letters show your professional standards because you’re so well trained through ICAS. As a CA, I also feel I have a responsibility when operating in the business world.

The role of a tax manager has evolved massively since I did the job at Clydesdale Bank seven years ago. It’s become more complicated with lots of international regulation. The need for transparency has increased too, with tax managers needing to produce information for tax authorities. The role is expanding beyond tax too, with tax specialists having a more governance-related role.

I’ve spent much of my career specialising in international tax. And I’ve spent a lot of time explaining complicated tax concepts to senior management teams.

Tax is complex by its nature, but I want to help simplify the system for our members. Whenever the government introduces new changes to the tax legislation, it’s my job to ensure they produce comprehensive guidance about it so that people can understand.

I did my ICAS interviews wearing a neck brace. I had a weightlifting accident in July, and dropped a barbell, breaking a bone in my neck. I was in a neck brace for three months. I remember texting the ICAS recruiter from A&E telling them I wouldn’t make the first interview. Luckily it all worked out.

I’ve joined ICAS at a very interesting time. I started in November, just two weeks before one of the most speculated-about Budgets in recent years, followed by January’s Scottish Budget, with Making Tax Digital to come. There’s so much to get involved with, but being busy is good.

My main function is to serve our members. I have to provide them with the high-quality technical info they need. It’s a policy role too, so I’ll be working with the UK and Scottish governments, HMRC and Revenue Scotland and making sure our members’ views are represented. I want to create strong relationships with our members and be a conduit for their concerns.

I also want to raise awareness and literacy of devolved taxes. The UK Budget can really affect the amount of money available to Scotland through the block grant. It’s important for people to understand how the national Budget, the block grant and devolved taxes all work together – plus the impact it has on Scotland.

We need to make sure nobody is left behind with Making Tax Digital. It will simplify the tax system, but there needs to be a greater awareness of people who don’t have access to digital platforms.

Will AI replace tax professionals? No. But those tax professionals who don’t know how to use AI will be replaced by those who do. It’s very good at looking at large datasets – something tax authorities deal with all the time. The technology will be part and parcel of our jobs, so we need to understand it and know how it works.

E-invoicing will be hugely influential. It’s already changing the way tax advisers interact with tax authorities, but there’s so much more to be done with the technology.

I’d recommend tax as a career for young CAs – it opens so many opportunities. As a tax manager/specialist, you need to understand how the whole business operates. This will involve lots of governance and speaking to senior team members. You often find people from a tax background have a real opportunity to become leaders.

Tax never sits still. It’s always changing and adapting to whatever’s happening in the world, whether net zero or AI. That’s why it’s a great area to specialise in.

I’m an amateur circus artist. I do aerial acrobatics such as the trapeze and ropes, plus partner acrobatics which involves lifting people up. I’ve also performed at an artists’ showcase in Edinburgh and trained with circus schools. It’s much less boring than the gym.

Playing isn’t just for kids. Circus activities such as the tightrope might be difficult physically, but I love it because it feels like playing. I believe all adults should have the opportunity to play as it brings so many benefits.

If you have any comments or feedback for the ICAS tax team, please email tax@icas.com