The Press Saturday, March 7, 1931. Taxation and Responsibility.

Press, Volume LXVII, Issue 20180, 7 March 1931, Page 14

The Press Saturday, March 7, 1931. Taxation and Responsibility.

It .was aii interesting &dtuire of the Commonfteaitk nhniml rcSport, rfefei£ed to in a cable fftttft GAnberrfi, yesterday* that fafe Vigorously efititiißdd thd distribution bt {fie dtfetfi tfi±-biltdeii. Eighty pet dent, of adult wdge-eatnCrs pay lio itiUbitte tas, and abbut one elector in thirteen IS a® direct tfti-pftj^i 1 . "Out << 0 £ 3,fe00,000 electors,'' tlife Aiiditorsaid, "264,760 iax-paycirs Have "to ihore that their faif ShAre "of the national burden." It is not &0 easy to (Jomptire tlie positioh of wage-eattiers in Aufetfalid Zealand, although it be ffifeiitidned that of 68,884 retums in Group 0 o£ Oldife I (salttty bf Wages) in 1929-30, brily 26,661 paid tdi, and that Of course fco wCiiriis Vtevi Supplied bf incomes bcilow £2sd> Since the cebsus Of 1928 that about 288,000 malte abotit 33,000 females over 21 years of age were receiving incomes upwards of £156 a year, it seems without gcfikg' fttftyr to bfe "ii ffeasotkiibiy ftfcdutate that the Jjfbpdrtibtl of wage-earners who escape income tax is at itiast high ill Nety SSealAhd, &hd probably liighei? jl bttt tM other compftr&bii cdH bfe vfery Simply ffidde. At tfeg Mecticrti of 1028 tiatoes on the toll totalled about 845,000. tfhe total niimb^t J of; ilidividual taxpayers, Cilass t, wad 50,330 ifl 19&0-3O: in proportion to electors (increase during the interval being ignored) as one to i 7, against the Australian proportion of one to 13, The indden<3& of direct taxation in this Country is therefore mote selective Btill than in.Australih, eo thht, if thd Aiiditdft-Gfenfeiral's ttfitiSisih ia doiind iU {Wfitsi|)le; it weakness We 5 and it is thoroughly sofand. - As we said no longer ago than S-Bsltflifd&y and baVG siiid ihany tiriitis iM ifadu6wde9 liaVb bedn Mors depraving in democratic -government, #hether the polifcitiian iel corisidered or tHB elfeidttlfj than tlte feilSy to. the diliiy dt the eiof and to prortiige wholeude bfeneflts bad feerKiees oh the satttd bf fi&yirletit. What has' hdppßded( liluatrtltfes again the old tflg ; , tJtfrtiplio tipiimi ptesimp—Jfathihg is (?6tse thaii The bf iihitfdverftetit, diffeatfed ilie and Utoin fjiiblie pfoduded adtaitable ±e-> Hflil m ib Still fiWdiiSirit thfeihj^tit pw , ~ wflofi it ptadr good rebave ttp lbdg ago been, ltidt sighi M r i| *& qptlbft uoi now 6x* itte lOcHidU pakrtial» iip doN fcaa in tiß ead dsfoty m mmiw* kem (s'&ij^l^sibility., It does not need to ba .that industry, is -tit preseiit | heavily and Itiiig; been bver-burddflfect If t&xAtidn, ilia weight of which' baa been rapidly inn;eased by the growing cost of social 'flnatioiAl teaiifi; still nMHfdF to* em i s aS'iM < j|»3ta e^' < '™" )ok in ,?o£j ■iß

the Tffiinimnm and maximum, giV4fi ift thd' find Bdsdd bh thb • census returns, incomes between £W~ iXtt Mt * tdta! -ilnfdSl £i§,SoO,000, between £2OB and £3ll nearly £40,000,000. While Mr Forbes is in fi, ibdoS tit (Jbufslgb, lib blight Bbti&ide? thesg f&sts ahd, m6tb neceS&afyj thti principles of BMI6 and salutary taxation whidfi mike them j significant. j ' "fr r—as' \ - fellffdlrtfc LeSsortS. ©■ It Ban hardly Be ttfedess&rjr td drttW attention to the very ihiporl&nfc stdtemeni; ittildd dn this pAgH by Pl'dffessbr j» fc. L. Ctill, CBttifmarl oJC the buildings Rdgulatibn Committee slat up re-' dbiitly by thb PrlfattS Minister; If it is not the first authoritative statement we iiave liad from ille earthquake area, it is the first stftteftlbttt by an ftlithttrity Wllb is at cthce disinlfetesttd and disinclined by training and temperament to express tiny bht the scientific vibWi It is tb be also that although Professor Cull addresses himself primarily to builders, atld ktrtictniral eiigindbi-fy His advice ig of vafye to Whb liVes tn? worts in a house* " Improved build- " ing pradtice" will come, not only from tlid ti'ade itself, and tlitt pi-bfefe-sions directing it, bttfc from the people fob whom the buildihg is done and thbse by Whbiii its fit lilts will be Mt if thb test iJdindS A secOiid tihie. It is not quite true; in any market/ that we gbt What we demftbd and are willing to pay fot, but it is tflle tfailt wlifct Wg-gbt bcatfs a frtirly definite relation to what wo ask for.intelligently. If it is ti-üb'j ris Cilll seeitts tb siiy, that bettet and sfafer buildings will not necessarily dofcfc more mdney'j thertj can bb fid th<s old fdillts; ahd eVbii if! lib dobs not say qllitb as much, as that, he says that tlid dpidibil is " Bttdngly, Held " by the tjofaimittge that coußtrubtloh bdn be improved over all classes of buildings without increased cost to the mvntirj Thte 6f Cbufeb iheaiiS' that if existliitf laults are perpetuated it will be through ignorance and indifference, for wjiiclt itt the fUtttfe tHei# 'Will bb M &tthlsc.