"MIGHT HAVE BEEN WORSE"

Evening Post, Volume CXII, Issue 86, 8 October 1931, Page 14

"MIGHT HAVE BEEN WORSE"

(By Telegraph.; (Special to "The Evening Post.") DUNEDIN, This Day. "It might have been worse," seems aptly to sum up the general opinion of those about the city who were asked to express opinions on the proposals of the Government to deal with the finances of the Dominion as outlined in the supplementary Budget.

Whilst most of those\who spoke were naturally averse to increased taxation, they were of opinion that the Government had Made an attempt to distribute, taxation equitably, and generally most of the proposals found approval.

The "Evening Star" says:— ■ "New Zealand in her financial policy has imitated Britain fairly closely, and if would have been by no means altogether unexpected if Mr. Stewart had intimated that a conversion scheme of internal debts was under consideration. That is the position in Britain, Mr. Snowden having announced that the Government would await a favourable opportunity for such an operation,. The New Zealand Minister of Finance, however, declines absolutely, to entertain any such proposal. There can be no doubt that of all resorts to Budgot balancing it would be the most efficacious and certain, despite Mr. Stewart's contention that, taking into account certain set-offs which he. deems as following, inevitably from such an action, the result would be to burden the Budget still further instead of balancing it. The revenue shortages which the new Minister of Finance is seeking to make up exceed one and a half million pounds, of which nearly a million is represented by the failure of the railways by that amount to pay interest on their capital cost. Is it the fault, of the Government administration or of the taxpayer that that capital cost is inordinately high? Is it the fault of the taxpayer or of the railways administration that the railways arc not better utilised for both goods and passenger purposes? If our railways could be made to pay no such exceptional efforts as are being now' asked of the people would be required in order to enable Home investors in our railways to receive steady incomes to which British investors in British railways have latterly been entire strangers."