BRITISH BUDGET

Hokitika Guardian, 12 April 1927, Page 3

BRITISH BUDGET

I HON W. ( HUB CHILL’S S’J'ATEM ENT. {Australian A X.Z. Cable Association.] (Received this day at ID. 15 a.m.) LONDON, April 11. Hi a crowded tense house, Jinn Winston Churchill rose nt .‘i.oo to announce the Budget. At the outset, he reminded the House that hi.s calculations last year were based on industrial peace. Customs and excise receipts had dropped nine and a quarter mil- ( lion-: income lax. eighteen millions; I’o-t Ollice. hall million; stamp duties, one and a qnnrier millions. I he iolal loss due to the general and (dal strikes was thirty-two millions, made lip as follows—Decreased revenue. seventeen and a-lialf millions: increased expenditure, fourteen and uluilf millions, resulting in a loss of income and Miner taxes spread over this and future years amounting to thirty millions. It had been noeessnrv !o raise more Treasury Rills. The expected fall in money rates had not eventuated thereby costing six millions extra in interest on more and more expensive Treasury Rills. The marvel "as that they had not suffered more irrecoverable losses from the shocking breakdown. Revenue had in the main survived, and exchange stood like a rock, and in the face of if ail the gold standard survived* Reel' and spirits alone reflected to the exchequer, the social, industrial struggle, hut I rude Unwed on. England had not advanced as rapidly as some nations, but still -he was advancing. The economic vitalilv and financial strength. Iliougli strained, were unimpaired. Referring (o the demands for forty million enf in expenditure, the Chancellor said this would cause a convulsion into which no Government could plunge. Allowing for the decline in money values, the expenditure on national administrative services was actually ten per cent, below 191 t despite the increase in population and higher standards of living. To cut the lighting services by ten In fifteen per cent., would cause a panic, and the tinaoeial dictator might he replaced by another. No ('oust it lit ioiial Government could

plunge into it. It would he out of harmony with present requirements to abolish the .Ministry of Labour and premature to liquidate the Ministry of Pensions, fmt the Prime Minister had authorised the announcement that during the present financial year arrangements would he made to abolish the Ministry of Transport, as a separate .Ministry. The Road Department would he retained and arrangements would he made to distribute the functions of the Minos Department, and to terminate the separate existence of the O'Orsons Trade Department. (Cheers). Those changerequired legislation and Parliament therefore would have an opportunity to consider them.

Mr Churchill also promised the marked rout met inn of new entries to the Civil Service. A definite reduction of the total expenditure was essential and there should also he savings. Hi view, however, of the way previous promises have been handled, he could give no assurance. 'T can only say f will do my best.' - lie had to estimate for a decline of nearly twenty-three millions on the Statement of last year. The only bright spot was the increase from motor licenses duties from twenty-one and n-half millions last year to twenty-four millions, lie estimated customs and excise revenue at 247 millions while he .-.till considered six millions would he returned from the betting tax. Spirit duty had fallen tliree-ouarters of a million below the estimate. Clearly the present rale and strength was resulting in a steady decline in eansumplion.

Referring lo war debls, fin- f iuineeiior said that during five years Britain bad paid America 102 millions Against these annual payments In America of thirty millions, eight am! a-half millions bad been received from German reparations during 181-i and seventeen and a half millions in I92fi. while next year (lie amount should rt-aeli twenty-live millions. 'I lie- deficiency to Ih- borne by British taxpayers was 110 millions, a sacrifice and effort in the interests of European stabilisation without pantile!. Mr Churchill said lie bad never dreamed of meeting the deficit by the partial susnension of 500 millions sinking fund, ft would be cowardly. Britain could not afford to fly the signal of distress. There was no excuse and no need for it. She had not only paid her way luit even in tin l year ot misfortune had paid oil thirty and a-hali millions of debt. It was not every country could say that, hut the fact remained that we. for the moment, were thirty-three millions behind our programme of debt reduction. Wv had failed to that extent, and could not proceed on our way and leave the debt to bury itself. We must pay oir in the present year a substantial sum of the inroad made into the sinking fund. An over large amount of new revenue would have to be found. He had examined every means of preventing further crippling taxes. fneomo tax would be simplified. The Act would Ire rewritten in simple laliI gunge. There would Ik- one scale and one, return for income tax ami super tax. one demand and one payment. I phoies whereby taxes could b> dodged would be eliminated. Proposals would also ire made to prevent the avoidance of supertax by the formation of one man companies. 'U>Inieco consumers who wore greatly augmented by woman smokers would lie called on to bear an increase in duty which would be increased from 9s 2d to 9s Hid per pound, which wits expected to yield throe millions.

He did not intend that the whole tobacco increase should lie passed on to the consumer. Labour voices—•‘Rubbish.”

Mr Churchill said the consumption of wine was 50 per cent, above the prewar amount. He proposed to lower the dividing line for foreign wines from thirty to thirty-five degrees. Tunes for E,moire wines would be twenty-se-ven degrees. Non-Empire wine of more than twenty-five would pay eight shillings nor gallon, instead of six shillings. and wine less than twenty-five degrees, 'three shillings, instead of lndf-a-crown. Empire! wines vynih! pav four shillings and two shillings pc. gallon. The yield would be a million and a quarter. This year a new industry bad sprung up in wines made in Britain, which avoided duty as reported unfcrmented. These from goth.

April would nay one shilling per gallon duty yielding ninetv thousand sterling, lie did not intend that the whole decrease should tie pressed on to the consumers. Labour voices— “Rubbish.'' Mr Churchill—"A'ou’ll see." The new duty would lx>. effective from Ttieday. Income from the road fund ■ being increased more than three ini' lion annually. Revenue from livenswas sufficient to carry out every great road-making scheme, lienee the reset- c of twelve millions would be transferred to the Exchequer. Imported motor tyres would immediately be broc within the ambit of the McKenna duties. thirty-three and one third per rcvit. ad valorem. The duty on Empire tvres would be rebated one third. 1 anticipated a yield of three-quarters of a million. He proposed no pemanent

tax for the sake of adding to the sinking fund, but he issued a, warning against demands of any Party for further expenditure.

Mr Churchill concluded : '| am at the end of my adventitious resources. Co less the expenditure is reduced as the revenue grows, there can he no reduction of taxation. If the expenditure grows there can he no other means to meet it, except a further tax on sugar Slid increase of income tax. Sooner than reduce the sinking fund below the present standard of fifty millions. I will without hesitation resort to those increases.” The Chain lor estimated the total increased return for 1927 would he, thirty-eight millions. lie re-.: i d his seat at 0.20 having spokln for . > hours and twenty-live minutes in the 1.5 ml get. introduction. Mr Churchill's Faster Fgg Budget had been preceded by so many indicative official straws that everyone hoc R'i idea of the way the breeze was blowing. It was not a Rudgtt ol -surprises. Everyone interested was aware that some duty was mining. 'lke only conjecture was how much. l'.veii though thirteen motions appeared on the business paper del 4 Hiding ccoiinmies and even the abolition ol departments. and one critic using one ol Mr Churchill's own phrases described him as “A piebald coll, sired by terminological inexactitude and iimined by sporting men ol the country, the House was hy no means unsympathetic knowing the Chancellor was the hopeless receiver of the general strikes filial and most t.Dgie chapter.