AUSTRALIA.

Taranaki Daily News, 18 September 1920, Page 5

AUSTRALIA.

NEW REVENUE SOURCES. BORROWING TO CEASE. By Telegraph.—Press Assn>-C!opyrigMj Received Sept. 17, 5.5 p.m. Melbourne, Sept. 17. Sir Joseph Cook, in his Budget, estimates the revenue for 1320-21 at £63,364,000, and the expenditure at £68,572,000, a deficit of £5,500,000. The 1920 surplus, however, would leave a surplus of £240,000 at June 30. New revenue will be derived from the following:— A beer duty of fid a gallon, providing an increase of £1,258,000. Duty on spirits of 3s a gallon, giving an increase of £300,000. Tobacco duty to provide £375,000 more. Postal letters 2d; telegrams an increase of 3d all round; telephones 25 per cent, increase, giving a total of £1,233,000. On income tax an additional five per cent, will be levied, yielding £OOOO,OOO, making a grand total of £3,7W,000. The amusement tax has been amended to operate on three shilhng tickets and over. The war time profits tax lapses. The increase of threepence in telegrams includes a proportionate increase in Press rates. The letter rate to Britain and the British Empire has bsen increased to twopence. It is estimated that £62,241,000 was spent during the year on war services, Including £22,470,000 in soldiers' land settlement, £4,500,000 in repatriation, and £7,250,000 in pensions. . In order to pay off the war debt more rapidly, an additional one-half per cent, is proposed as a sinking fund on war loans, making the sinking fund allocation ono per cent., yielding £3,1200,000, and thus redeeming the loans in thirty-seven instead of fifty years. The estimates provide £BOO,OOO for aviation, £000,P0t) for telegraph and telephone construction, and £600,000 for memorials and other work conected with those killed in the war. There will be no more borrowing for the remainder of thf year, except small sums for public works.~-Aus.-NJZ. Cable Assn.