The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) has again acknowledged its efforts to recover billions of dollars worth of ‘on hold’ debts from small businesses and individuals in 2023 caused “distress” to some of those affected, and has committed to improving the way it communicates about debts owed to its office.

The renewed commitment followed the release on Tuesday of a new set of guidelines from the Commonwealth Ombudsman Iain Anderson and Inspector General of…