Financial Statement.

Greymouth Evening Star, Volume XXXI, 17 August 1901, Page 3

Financial Statement.

(per government wire.)

Wellington August 17. Last night in Committee of Supply Mr Seddon presented his Budget. lie said the statement was waited for with more tl an usual interest. The revenue received last year exceeded expectations. After meeting all current obligations there was a balance on the credit side of £532,564.

A feeling had been raised in the public mind that additional taxation was impera. tive. He was however glad to say that the revenue this year more than meets the expenditure, and that there would be no deficit. It had been stated that it was proposed to meet the deficiency by additional land tax or a re-arrangoment of the customs duties, and also that the claims of the old ago pensions could not bo met. The only foundation that could possibly have given rise to these rumours was the statement that he made to a deputation against pressing for an excessive public works’ expenditure, wherein ho had incidently stated that the revenue returns did not warrant the suggested expenditure. He had stated in the House that if the Government was to keep the pledge given last year in granting the reduction of £d in the pound on the mortgage tax tho graduated tax on land would require to be increased, and ho now found that view verified. Revenue cannot be given away without a necessary recoupment, as the expenditure and revenue are fairly and evenly balanced; but it is owing to the inclusion of nearly £120,000 and non reoccurring expenditure this year and an increase in tho education and technical education of £6,700 and an increase in tho Colonial Secretary’s Department of £69,300, caused by extraordinary services ; also the rate for defence being largely increased. ?et with all these demands there will be sufficient to meet all demands, and there will be no deficit, He, however, urged the necessity for prudence and economy, as, owing to tho concession in tho tariff, the penny postage, railway charges, and others, there is a decrease of £9,500, and the expenditure should bo very jealously guarded. With a surplus of over half a million last year and a favorable revenue coming in, there was every prospect that more concessions could be made ; but the more prudent course is to cut down expenditure to the lowest limit.

DEMAND FOK PUBLIC WORKS. Had forced borrowing up to a limit beyond which it would not bo safe to go. .'There need be no curtailment in the direction of obtaining lands for settlement or reading back blocks, or advances to settlers, for advancing the North Island Trunk Line, or otherwise developing within reasonable limits. Prudence required that there should be a reduction on several classes of public works, district railways, and especially buildings. The several services of the colony had necessarily increased, and when increased taxation was required reductions in salaries must eximuate. Therefore, it behoved those responsible to keep down expenditure. The public works requirements this year are large, and he was compelled to use £500,000 of the surplus. The money market in London continues to be unavailable, and they had had to raise £500,000 locally on short-dated debentures at 4 per cent, as it would be some time before the loans could be floated in London to advantage. REVENUE. The actual revenue was £5,859,705, to which had to be added £51,800 derived from the sale of debentures, and a small item of £l4ll, recovered from the previous year; total, £5,906,916, an increase of £272,320 over last year, which amounted to £5,880,385. The estimate had been exceeded by : £429,516. i The Penny Postage concession had , given universal satisfaction, and he had i no doubt that the loss would rapidly be ; made good by increased correspondence. The railways had yielded a handsome s surplus over the estimate.and it continues ; to be maintained. > There was an increase over the estimate of £30,000 in the territorial revenue, . chiefly from land sales. £6OOO was however over-estimated under registration and other fees. THE EXPENDIIDEH. 3 The net saving in ' the expenditure as I compared with the estimate was £93,590. j The estimated expenditure was £5,906,916 and the ordinary revenue was £5,479,703.

Out of the balance brought forward from the previous year a transfer of £5,000,000 was made to - to the Public Works Fund, leaving at the close of this year a balance amounting to £532,564. The transactions on both sides of the Public Works Fund were largely increased last year. The ordinary expenditure exceeded that of last year by £3l-5,000, and extra had to be found to provide for this. The balance of the loan of 1899, amounting to £700,000 was raised, also £200,000 under the act of last session. LOANS TO LOCAL BODIES ACCOUNT. The balance brought forward was £20,598. Debentures were created to the amount of £170,000, and refunds of uaspent balances amounted to £7,726. Payments on account of loan to local bodies, £138,956 ; opening up land £35,390, leaving a balance of £27,973. The total amount of debentures issued and carried into this account was £1,530,000, and the total disbursements to local bodies £1,138,497; to land and surveys, £282,356 ; Public Works fund. £89,800 ; The Public Health Act and the Slaughtering Act permit of loans being granted for sanitary works, and the erection of abattoirs, and applications under these Acts are now being received. The total inscribed debt of the local bodies amounts to £1,222,234. LAND TAX. The land for settlement account balance brought forward from last year, was £53,389, and by the sale of debentures funds were obtained amounting to £219,000. Bents and other moneys received, £72,796. On the other side the purchase money for acquiring estates totalled £186,621, interest on debentures, £50,910; expenses, £14,305, leaving |a balance of £93,341. The purchase of land for close settlement is being vigorously carried on. During last year about 177 farms were provided and about 170 workmen’s homos, THE PUBLIC DEBT. on tho 31st March, 1900, was £47,875,442 and on the 31st March, 1901, it was £49,591,245, an increase of £1,716,793. The net, debt on the 81st March lass was £48,557,341, showing £1,627,675 of a net increase of debt. During ih-t year £900,0C0 of n->w 1-t i money has been r dsed for tho Pub.ic vVorks fund. £380,000 was raised for tho purchase of estates, £219,000 for grants to local bodies, £176,000 for dairy industries and Government Accident Insurance. RAILWAYS. On the 31st March, 1901, the mileage open was 2113, and the train miles run 4,620,981, They carried 6,243,952 passengers, 633,770 parcels, 72,868 cattle, 2,412,191 sheep, 551,879 tons of merchandise, and 1,366,241 tons of minerals, earning a gross income of £172,736 and employed 7,793 men. Tho actual profit for the year was £599,339 as against £571,538 last year on a capital cost of £17,207,328. This gives a profit of £3 9s 8d as against £3 8s 5d of last year. MIDLAND RAILWAY. The Eoyal Commission reported that the Company and debenture-holders bad been very well treated. They found that the total expenditure by the Company in railway was £1,108,528, of which only £654,411 was expended on the actual construction and equipment of railway and the balance £454,217 on supervision, commission, and salaries, cost of raising capital and the interest charged to capital account and incidentals. The commission states that the financial charges were enormous in comparison with the work done, and that the sums paid for debenture interest, shareholders’ interest, cost of raising money on debentures, administration and law costs wore out of all proportion to the amount expended on construction and equipment. They further report that the selling value of the whole railway is £192,833 and that the amount realised by the Company from the Government land grant was £313,060 or £50,195 in excess of the value at which the grant was debited to the Company. They also find that Government provided money against tho cost of construction of the railway to tho amount of £38,439. The petitions of the debenture-holders and the Company should bo dealt with this session. THE POST AND TELEGRAPH Is more for the convenience of the people thanfor revenue purposes, yet itwas more than self-supporting last year. The expenditure was £416,363 and the receipts £502,181. This year tho expenditure is estimated at £441,214 and tho revenue £485,800. In tho SAYINGS BANK this increase is phenomenal. The total at credit having increased at the .rate of 137 per cent. STATE COAL MINES. The time has arrived when the colony should supply itself with coal, private enterprise not meeting the demand. Bituminous coal should be obtained at 5s to 7s 6d per ton leas than we are paying. THE ESTIMATES. For 1901-02 are set down at £5,763,814 an increase of £284,111, interest on loans £70,000, census £IB,OOO, Royal visit £50,000 being exceptional items. The revenue is estimated at £5,839,000, with an additional £5,700 from sales of debentures, NATIONAL EDUCATION. A Eoyal Commission has enquired into the w'holo question of teachers’ salaries. Their repoi’t contains two scales of staffs and salaries for public schools. The first involves an expenditure of £4 per head on the average attendance, the second on the basis of £4 2s 6d per head. The Commission also suggests that for two years no salaries should be lowered, and, as the cost would be trifling, this suggestion may readily be adopted. Last year’s appropriation was £398,000, but this year £416,200 is required. Under the head of technical instruction, the expenditure during the year may be estimated at £14,000 or £15,000.