  We modelled the distribution and the kinematics of HI in the inner Milky Way
(R<Rsun) at latitude b=0{\deg} assuming axi-symmetry. We fitted the line
profiles of the LAB 21-cm survey using an iterative approach based on the
tangent-point method. The resulting model reproduces the HI data remarkably
well, with significant differences arising only for R<2 kpc. This suggests
that, despite the presence of a barred potential, the neutral gas in the inner
Milky Way is distributed in a fairly axi-symmetric disc.
