THE COLONIAL REVENUE.

Globe, Volume XXIII, Issue 2248, 12 May 1881, Page 3

THE COLONIAL REVENUE.

I_Bt Tblbqeaph.] [fbom the own coeebspondent of thb “PEBBS.”] WELLINGTON, May 11. I am now in a position to give with accuracy a summary of the accounts for the financial year. The balance on Consolidated Fund account carried forward from the 187980 period was £38,555. Since then the re-, ceipts have been as follows: Custom?, £1.307.634; stamps, £142,803 ; beer duty, £45,968; property tax, £219,716; total raised by taxation, £1,716,141. Railways, £B3B 622; postal, £149,042; telegraphic, £67,437 ; judicial, £56,222 ; land transfer and deeds registry, £40,032 ; registration and other fees, £32.205; marine, £14,320; miscellaneous, £69,320; total services, £1,267,154 The territorial revenue, including depasturing licenses, <to., amounted to £130,163, and miscellaneous recoveries, £10,500, Those together make the receipts for the year on account of ordinary revenue, £3,123,960 During the year, however, deficiency bills to tho amount of £500,000 wore issued in aid of the revenue; but of these, £405,800 wore redeemed iucash, leaving £94,200 outstanding on the 31st March last. This, added to tho previous total, brings the receipts up to - £3,256,716.

The expenditure has been as follows: Permanent appropriations, £1,530,870. Annual appropriations, £1,624,961, which, with services not provided for, and debentures under the Nelson Waterworks Loan Act redeemed, bring up the amount to £3,168,183, leaving a balance of £88,533. As against this, however, there is the sum of £94,200 in deficiency bills outstanding, which leaves a net deficiency on account of ordinary revenue of £5667.

The land fund appears this year in a separate account for the first time. The total amount of land sales was £299,166, and the expenditure £266,793, leaving a balance of £32.373. The statement of receipts and expenditure of public works fund shows receipts to have been £3,321,347, and expenditure £1,960,974 leaving a balance of £1,360,373. In addition to this balance there is a balance of the Imperial guaranteed debentures un-issued of £500,000. This makes a total balance on the 31sfc of March, 1881, subject to liabilities of £1,860,373. The floating liabilities on public works fund for works and contracts in progress may, I understand, be estimated at about half a million. Probably nearly the whole of the of the loan would bo absorbed if the Native land purchases engagements, which have been entered into, were carried out. It is pretty generally known, however, that the policy of the present Government is to abandon those purchases, and if Parliament agrees to this course there will be, as will be seen from the figures quoted above, a substantial sum left from loan to prosecute public works.