HAVING a witch for a mother-in-law is one of the oddest excuses for missing the deadline for submitting tax returns, it has been emerged.

HMRC has revealed the most outlandish reasons given for failure to give details of income and expenditure on time.

They include: my mother-in-law is a witch and put a curse on me; I’m too short to reach the post box; and my boiler had broken and my fingers were too cold to type

Angela MacDonald, HMRC's customer services director, said: “We want to make it as simple as possible for our customers to do their tax returns and the majority make the effort.

"But each year we still come across some poor excuses. Sadly I cannot confirm whether the claim about a witch came from a Pendle taxpayer.

“Help will always be provided for those who have a genuine excuse. If you think you might miss the January 31 deadline, get in touch with us now.”