BRITAIN’S BUDGET.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXV, Issue 91, 24 April 1913, Page 5

BRITAIN’S BUDGET.

STRIKING FIGURES. [By Electric Telegraph—Copyright] fUnited Press Association.] London, April 23. The Budget speech was uneventful and brief. It was stated that the overseas trade had reached its highest point. The home trade was the heaviest on record. The coal strike had caused a loss of revenue of £550,000, while the withholding of stocks of tea, sugar, and tobacco, in anticipation of reduction in the duty, had depressed the revenue by £450,000. Although eight million gallons less spirits had been consumed during the last four years, the highest duties had produced an increase of £2,000,000 last year. The expenditure exceeded the estimate by. £4,671,000, due chiefly to unforeseen naval increases and additional medical remuneration under the Insurance Bill. The expenditure in nearly every country had rushed up alarmingly through the growth of armaments, and there were small prospects of retarding it. The Treasurer confidently relied on the normal growth of revenue to meet the increased expenditure of 1913, with the exception of £815,000, which would bo met by taking the million unspent by tlio Admiralty in 1912. it is anticipated that increases from spirits and beer will be £922,000, from tea and sugar £619,000, and from tobacco £905,000. The national debt is being decreased by £12,000,000 annually. It is proposed to reinstitute the practice of two Finance Bills, ■one dealing with taxes and the other with amendments of the law.

“CHANCELLOR OVER-SANGUINE’ ’

Mr Austin Chamberlain viewed with anxiety that they were not profiting by the good time, but were spending every penny and mortgaging every penny of further income, while not increasing the reserve to meet bad times. Ho criticised the disappointing land value duty, which lia'd resulted in a return of £90,000 below the estimate in two years. The old sinking fund had been robbed of £3,000,000 to provide for commitments. He agreed that the armament expenditure was beyond the Government’s control, but it was different with regard to civil expenditure. Old age pensions had proved double the amount originally estimated. Something similar had occurred in connection with the Insurance Bill. He hoped the Government would consider the severance of insurance administration from the Treasury. The Chancellor was over-sanguine regarding the estimates of 1913.