A TAXPAYERS’ BUDGET

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22985, 14 September 1936, Page 8

A TAXPAYERS’ BUDGET

The Federal Treasurer was in the happy position of being able to state, in his Budget speech last week, that the economic future of the Commonwealth appeared to be brighter than at any time since 1929. It ought to be possible to say the same thing about this country, insofar as the prospect of consolidating recovery is concerned; but actually it is a disturbing fact that the future of the Dominion, because of the Government’s policies, is virtually unpredictable. The Commonwealth Government is taking advantage of a greatly strengthened financial position not to retard further progress, but to encourage it. Here a Government which undertook to reduce taxation and to foster industrial expansion is increasing taxation and at the same time fastening on industry a stranglehold from which it may take years to free itself. The catalogue of benefits enumerated in the Federal Budget is a striking one. Taxation is to be reduced to the generous extent of £5,275,000, the remissions including £3,000,000 in sales tax—corresponding to the tax which was anathema to the Labour Party in New Zealand until it assumed office —£2,105,000 in income tax, and £170,000 in primage duty. The special property tax is to be abolished, and at the same time there are to be increases in old-age and invalidity pensions, and full salary restorations to civil servants. Of last year’s surplus of £3,567,000, the sum of £ 2,000,000 is to be diverted to swell the defence vote to the impressive total of £8,766,000, and the Minister has budgeted for a surplus of £45,000 in the current year; During the year exports showed a gain of £10,000,000 on the value for the previous year, wool and wheat both realising many millions more. Unemployment, according to the Federal Treasurer, is now back almost to the predepression figure, successful loan conversions have resulted in tremendous savings in interest and other charges, and the total of State deficits, which stood at £20,000,000 in 1931-32, is now less than £2,500,000. On the whole the Budget contains extraordinarily good news for the Federal taxpayer, who should be able to anticipate the future with a great deal of confidence. If is unfortunate that the same cannot be said for the taxpayer in New Zealand, who has seen, even at this early stage of Labour’s career in office, all promises of relief from a crushing burden vanish into thin air. Our contemporary, the Evening Post, has contrasted the position of the two countries not unfairly when it* says that “the Lyons Commonwealth Government is using prosperity to reduce taxation, and the New Zealand Labour Government is using taxation to reduce prosperity.”