FINANCIAL STATEMENT.

Tuapeka Times, Volume III, Issue 119, 19 May 1870, Page 6

FINANCIAL STATEMENT.

In 1869 the Council met with a debit of £24,769 9s Sd, and it was 'the same when the present Government took office. The revenue from the Ist of April, 1869, to March 31st was £289,677 19s 6. The expenditure during the same period was in excess of the revenue, it being £315,867 11s. That showed a balance of indebtedness of £43,350 5s Sd. That amount had jiot been incurred ; the suspense account, which was larger than usual, amounting to £15,513 4s Id, should be deducted, and their liability would be found to be £26,835 16s. In fact, £11,000 would represent the excess over estimated expenditure for the year. Mr Duncan then gave reasons why they had exceeded to this extent ; it was to reduce interest and sinking funds on loans by their conversion. This increased their indebtedness for. the present, but the Province would be a gainer in the longrun to the amount of £93,663. After going into the details of various accounts, he proceeded to say : — You will see by the statement of revenue that our revenue has kept up, and there has been an increase in almost everything except our land revenue. — (Hear, hear.) I am sorry to say our land sales have fallen off very much this last year. When we commenced we had a very large quantity of land in the market. The land sales for 1869-70 were only 23,986 acres. The difference between the sales of this year and of 1867-8 is thus nearly, 100,000 acres ; and between this year and 1868-9 about 106,000 acres. During the last three years we sold about 274,213 acres ; but what have we done for the people ? We have declared into Hundreds, during the last year, 32,000 acres. I stall now pass to some other items, and show on what ground I frame my estimates for the present year. Little land was sold last year, but I expect that this year there will be a large increase in the quantity disposed of, seeing that there has been a lull recently, and that many persons are waiting until the country is opened up in Hundreds before they purchase land. The Secretary for Lands and Works has given instructions that large portions of the country should be surveyed, and I think that the amendments made by this House during last session, in regard to the land question, will be adopted by the Assembly. In all, there are now being surveyed 50,000 acres, and there are surveyed 28,000 ; so that I have every reason to anticipate that, next year, my estimates in this respect will be realised. " From the Goldfields Leases he expected £ 12,000. Last year the receipts for Crown Lands, together with the assess -

ment on sheep and cattle, were estimated at £136,000, the amount received being £92,962 7s. 3d. ; the gold export duty was estimated at £19,000, the amount received, 20,142 10s. 9d. ; rents and agricultuJal leases were estimated at £14,000. The total sum received amounted to £19,460 3s. lid., which is greatly in excess of the amount estimated last year. These are the items that have made up for the falling off in our land revenue. After detailing the difference between the estimates of last year's revenue from vai'ious sources and the actual receipts, Mr. Duncan said they would see that estimate of the revenue was framed principally upon the receipts of revenue obtained last year. They would be as follows : — Consolidated revenue, £95,000; crown lands, £135,000 ; gold duty, £21,000 ; agricultural leases, &c, £19,540; jetty dues, £4500 ; harbour dues, £300 ; tolls on roads, £12,000 ; dog and goat tax, £5000 ; licenses, £13,000 ; school fees, books, rent of educational reserves, £400; repayments, Hospital, Asylum, and Reformatory, £1000; Gaol maintenance of debtors, &c, £200 ; immigration passage money, £5000; rents, £200; incidental receipts; £1000; sale of Government buildings and land, 800 ; sale of telegraph line and material, £4000; G-eneral Government, for keep of Maori prisoners, £2000. " The House will be called upon to pass a certain resolution which the Government are to propose in regard to very large loans, to enable them to cany out, if possible, the Southern Trunk Eailway — (hear) — to form water reservoirs on the Goldfields ; and also to construct the Oamaru dock — (Laughter.) Also for the Waitaki Bridge and the banking in of the Clutha and Taieri rivers. The amount altogether will be somewhere about £600,000.— (Hear, hear.) I have every reason to believe that we shall get the loan next session of the G-eneral Assembly." Mr. Duncan, enumerated the many public works that had been executed in the province during the past year or two. He moved the item, Interest on Loan, 1861-62, £3,300. The motion was carried. The debate on Mr. Brown's amendment on Mr. Haughton's amended motion wa3 then resumed.