UMEMPLOYMENT REPORT

Hokitika Guardian, 26 February 1930, Page 5

UMEMPLOYMENT REPORT

THE TAXATION PROPOSAL. (By Telegraph—Press Association) WELLINGTON, Feh. 25

The Unemployment Committee goes on to express the unanimous opinion that the problem of unemployment is a general one. and. in forming its .recommendations, it has provided for tiie. erst to be spread as equitably as possible over the whole community. A proportion of the national revenue, it says, should he set aside annually, as a reserve fund, to provide, lor the purposes of the Unemployment Board. It says that a. reserve fund should he set. up and should be contributed to by all of the people in accordance with the proportion of income derived by each from the country’s earnings. In order to reach all incomes below £3OO (the exemption mark of the existing income tax law), the committee recommends the imposition of a Flat Individual Tax, which would roughly approximate one penny in the pp-uud, find that, utilising the existing machinery of the Income Tax Department, an Employment Tax at a flat rate of one penny in the pound he levied on all incomes over £300; such tax, however, to be assessed on an

individual basis, with the . dividends from public companies included; and that the companies be assessed only in respect of their undistributed profits; tlie companies to be also assessed as the agents for their absentee shareholder in respect of • the dividends paid to them; the absentees to be required to pay on their full assessable incomes, without such an exemption as is the case under the present Income Tax- Law. SPECIAL INDIVIDUAL TAX.

Tt is recommended that a special Individual Employment Tax shall he levied generally, with certain exceptions at the following rates—On people over 18 years of age the tax shall he:—Males (18 and 19 years of age), 18 shillings per annum); 23 years and over 24 shillings per annum. Femal-.s in office or other work, IS. and 19 years of age, 12s per annum ; 20 years and over, 18s per annum.

CONTRIBUTION FROM LOCAL BODIES. IL is recommended that the local bodies (cities, boroughs, counties and town districts), be required to ciontribute annually to the fund one per cent of their 'ordinary revenue from the general rates. The Committee estimates that the funds to be obtained from the various sources would be as follows: Flat Individual Tax—£sos.ooo. Flat tax of one penny in the £1 on incomes—£Bo,ooo. Flat tax of one penny in the £1 on all of the undistributed profits of companies, etc.—£22,500. Flat tax of three-sixteenths of a .penny , in. the £1 on the taxable balance of unimproved value of country lands, us assessed for land tax—£67,•500,- . ■ . ,

••V Local bodies’ contribution of one per cent of revenue, from the general rates—£2s,ooo. Total Fund—£7oo.ooo. A STATE SUBSIDY. Proceeding; ’ the' committee points out that this sum would be insufficient to provide for nil requirements and it therefore recommends that one-third of the total expenditure of the Employment Board in each year shall b? paid out of the Consolidated Fund, and two-thirds out of an Employment and Sustenance Fund, raised as proposed. “Our proposals as to the raising of the necessary Employment Fund, we believe, are new,” says the committee. “Wo are convinced they are more practical for New Zealand than would be the methods adopted in any other country, and that they are based upon social justice.” DUTIES OF THE BOARD. " The principal responsibility and duty of the Employment Board will be fo so stimulate and encourage the development of industry', and productive resources of the country by all means in its power that all persons seeking' employment will be absorbed in productive avenues in the ordinary course. As already indicated, ue re commend the granting to the Board of wide powers to arrange for the planning and co-ordination of necessary public works, both by the Government and by local authorities, to suit the labour position, so as to avoid, as fains possible, violent and frequent fluctuations in the labour demand for these works. A further sphere of action and resnnnsibilitv of the Board will be ,the placing of unemployed rersons in employment and the bringing together of employers seeking labour and the unemployed seeking work. For this purpose, it would be necessary that the present Employment Bureaux of the Labour Depaitment should bo transferred to the control of the Board, and reorganised on mii efficient basis as Labour Ex-r-haiig'S. All the unemployed seeking tin' assistance of the Employment Board should he required to register for employment at the nearest Labour Exchange. Any person not registering for employment should be required to present his Registration Certificate showing that his individual tax had been paid, without which no 'benefit work or sustenance could be obtained. “In dealing with the unemployed, the Board would operate through the Labour Exchanges to he taken over, and to be established, and organised as it seems necessary. Where there is no Labour Exchange, the branch offices of the Labour Department of any other existing Government or local body office may be made use of.

“We recommend that the whole efforts of the Employment Board should be directed and devoted to finding work for all of the unemployed seeking their assistance through registration at the Labour Exchange, but there will be many instances where, for various reasons, work cannot itn ■ mediately be fouiid, and in such cases, it will bo necessary for the Employment Board to pay a sustenance allowance payment until such time as work can be found. We recommend that sustenance payments should not be made to persons with independent incomes nor to any persons for the first week-of unemployment, nor in any case for a period, or periods, exceeding thirteen weeks in any one year.

“We have given the matter as to what scale of sustenance payments should be allowed under the Act, very careful consideration.” FARM PRODUCTION.

An important section of the report traverses, the possibilities of increasing farm production. The committee recommends the removal of all duties on stock foods, thus enabling the pig and poultry industries to reach an expirt basis and compete effectively on world markets, and. at the same time, extend the’ field of employment in the Dominion.