SURPLUS OF £8OO,O0O

Wairarapa Times-Age, 29 April 1939, Page 8

SURPLUS OF £8OO,O0O

ANNOUNCED BY FINANCE MINISTER HIGH TAXATION REVENUE. IN SPITE OF FALLING-OFF IN INCOME TAX. (By Telegraph—Press Association.) WELLINGTON. This Day. In a statement issued today by the Hon W. Nash (Minister of Finance) a preliminary announcement is made regarding the public accounts for the year ended March 31 last. “I have pleasure in announcing,” the Minister states, “that the public accounts tor the last financial year have more than iullilled the Government’s expectations, with the result that the surplus will be in the vicinity of £BOO,OOO. This amount is, of course; a preliminary estimate of the position and subject to the completion of the accounts and the usual Audit verification. Detailed results will be published in the “Gazette” at a later date, as in previous years. “Revenue tor the year totalled approximately £36.600,000 and exceeded the Budget estimate by approximately £700,000, of which taxation alone was responsible for £600,000. Thus Customs taxation, b°er duty _ ana sales tax togotner constituted a surplus of approximately £900.000. and stamp and death duties cf £lOO,OOO, which increases were offset to the extent of £200,000 by a fall-ing-ell' in income tax, while highways taxation was mainly responsible for the balance cl’ £200,000. The reduction in income tax revenue is attributable to the disorganisation caused by the recent transfer of the Department to mere commodious premises and the consequent late issue of , numbers cf income tax demands. In such cases, cf course, the current year’s revenue will receive the benefit. Other items of revenue, namely interest recoveries and miscellaneous receipts, adhered very closely to the Budget estimates. In regard to expenditure, permanent appropriations accounted for £14,400,060, and annual votes for £21.400,000, a total of £35,800,000 which corresponds with, the total amount appropriated for the year namely £35,800.000. In individual items comprising the main headings of expenditure, a saving of approximately £200.000 was effected in debt services, and £400,000 in exchange, which savings were offset by additional expenditure under annual voles to the extent of £700,000. Included in the excess expenditure under the annual votes, however, is a transfer of £272,000 to the Dairy Industry Account to cancel indebtedness in the account resulting from the deficit in guaranteed price for dairy produce during the 1936-37 season. “In brief,” Mr Nash explained, “the surplus' arises mainly from additional revenue, which indicates in turn the prosperous condition of the Dominion during the past year. It is particularly gratifying to me that each of the three Budgets for which the present Government has been responsible has produced a satisfactory surplus at the close of the year’s operations.”