THE COUNTRY’S FINANCES

Dominion, Volume 21, Issue 111, 8 February 1928, Page 10

THE COUNTRY’S FINANCES

FIGURES FOR NINE MONTHS INCREASE IN EXPENDITURE EXPECTED FALLING OFF IN CUSTOMS An increase in expenditure of £612,473 is revealed in the Public Accounts of the Dominion for the nine months which ended on December 31 last. The principal items of increase were repayment of public debt (£295,000), interest ,(£124,727), and subsidies to hospital and charitable aid boards (£49,000). The main decrease related to naval defence expenditure (£74,239). Revenue increased by £10,655. Stamp and death duties, which accounted for the chief increase, were an ordinary fluctuation. Diminished imports were reflected in a falling off in the Customs returns, the decrease amounting to £134,761. The excess of expenditure over revenue was £2,095,342, as compared with an excess of > £1,493,524 for the corresponding period of 1926.

The public accounts for the nine months which ended on December 31, 1927, appear in a special Gazefte issued last night. Hitherto the Act required publication quarterly of an abstract of the revenue and expenditure cf the preceding quarter. In accordance with an amending Act of last session, however, the figures now published show revenue and expenditure for the current financial year up to December 31, thus presenting a more complete statement of the position. An official summary is given below:— REVENUE The revenue received for the nine months amounted to £10,138,875, as compared with £16,1'28,220 for the corresponding period last year—an increase of £10,055. The principal increases are:— £ Stamp and death duties 170,121 Interest on railways capital liability 122,034 And the principal decreases:— Customs 134,761 Postal and Telegraph 72,066 Land tax 75,638 The increase in stamp and death duties occurs in the death duties and gift duty and is an ordinary fluctuation. The increase in interest on railways Capital liability is due to the increase in capital liability and to the fact that interest payments have been made earlier this year. The decrease in Customs revenue reflects the diminished imports, and was anticipated in assessing the estimated revenue for the year. .

EXPENDITURE The expenditure for the nine months was:— Permanent appropriations £11,208,928 Annual appropriations 7,025,289 £18,234,217 as compared with— Permanent appropriations £10,623,514 Annual appropriations 6,998,230 £17,621,744 for the corresponding period last year, an increase of £612,473, made up as follow :— Permanent appropriations £585,414 Annual appropriations ~. 27,059 £612,473 In permanent appropriations the principal items of increase are:— Interest £124,727 Repayment of Public Debt Act, 1925 295,000 Under special Acts .. 153,568 Under annual appropriations the main increases are:— Cook Islands £15,407 Defence Department 18,645 Department of Agriculture 29,299 Department of Education 45,223 Department of Scientific and Industrial Research '. 20,187 and the principal decreases: — Public buildings £15,596 Naval defence 74,239 The increase in interest is principally due to interest payable on moneys raised during the financial year. The increase under Repayment of Public Debt Act, 1925, is due to earlier payments. Under special Acts the principal increase is for subsidies to • hospital and charitable boards, £49,000; the balance is partly due to earlier payments.