THE KAIPARA AND WAITEMATA ECHO WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED "THE KAIPARA ADVERTISER & WAITEMATA CHRONICLE" HELENSVILLE, THURSDAY, March 13, 1919 DOMINION, FINANCES.

Kaipara and Waitemata Echo, 13 March 1919, Page 2

THE KAIPARA AND WAITEMATA ECHO WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED "THE KAIPARA ADVERTISER & WAITEMATA CHRONICLE" HELENSVILLE, THURSDAY, March 13, 1919 DOMINION, FINANCES.

THE Mercantile Gazette, forecasting the result of the financial year ending March 31, anticipates a surplus of about £3,750,000. Added to the war surpluses realised during the three previous years, this should give the Minister of Finance over £15,000,000. Commenting on this, the Gazette says: The Finance Minister should at the close of the present financial year have a very substantial nest egg to meet the extraordinary expenditure that may be found necessary during the next and succeeding financial year, which may prove to be the worst periods of transition from war conditions to peace conditions. In public finance it is a fundamental error to extract from the pockets of the people more than is actually necessary to meet the charges, and therefore a surplus of any dimensions shows faulty estimating. During the war the Minister deliberately set out to build up a reserve out of revenue and he has succeeded very well. The people have paid in taxation more than was needed by the Government to properly administer the affairs of the State, but the people acquiesced in this extortion, believing it was the right course to pursue in abnormal times. But care must be taken that this policy is not continued when normal conditions again prevail, otherwise the temptation to squader money in political adventures would be more than the average politician could resist. -