Campaign magazine's top ten impossible briefs

The Millennium Dome Government kill your speed campaign Government teenage pregnancy campaign Nurses recruitment Teacher training Single currency Government anti-drugs campaign Skoda cars Iceland supermarkets Government anti-smoking campaign

He is thought to have asked M & C Saatchi and image consultancy The Corporate Edge to improve the design of its leaflets and the letters it sends to taxpayers.

The Hector character, which was voiced by the late actor Alec Guinness, was introduced six years ago for a self-assessment campaign and was meant to re-assure taxpayers.

He was retired earlier this year, to the relief of some members of the Inland Revenue's staff, who disliked his bowler hat and pinstripe image.

Unfashionable brands

Advertising has been used to turn round unfashionable brands such as Skoda cars and Marmite.

But agencies have had less success persuading people to do things they don't want to - or trying to prevent them breaking the law.

Government-sponsored campaigns, including attempts to cut down on teenage pregnancy, persuade people not to smoke and stop speeding, were among those singled out last year in Campaign magazine's "top ten impossible briefs".

Critics of the current tax system, including the Liberal Democrats and the left-wing Fabian society, have suggested hypothecation - explicitly linking revenue to what it is being spent on, such as schools or hospitals - would make people happier about paying up.

M & C Saatchi also handles advertising for police recruitment and is best known for its ad campaigns for the Conservative Party during the 1980s.

How would you improve the image of the Inland Revenue?