BRITISH FINANCE

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 50, Issue 130, 14 March 1930, Page 5

BRITISH FINANCE

ESTIMATES OF EXPENDITURE. INCREASE OF FORTY MILLIONS. I.United Press Association— Copyright.) LONDON, March 12. With the issue to-day of the Army Estimates for the year 1930-81, it is row kaown what sum the Chancellor ot the Exchequer will have to provide to meet the needs of the services tor the vear. The estimates are as follows: Army: £40.500,000, a decrease ot £605,0*00. , . Navy: £51,739,000, a decrease ot £-1,126,000. Air Force: £17,850,000, an increase of £1,650,000. Civil votes: £295,685,000, an increase of £56,800.000. . Customs, excise and inland revenue: £12,134,666. , . The total is £417.909,000, showing a total increase of nearly £55,000,000. The exact amount of the debt and Consolidated Fund charges will not be disclosed until Budget day. In the last Budget the provision made for this expendtturt, including sinking fund, amounted to £379,000,000. In the coming financial vear, there will be a saving of £15,000,000 in Consolidated Fund charges by payments which had hitherto been made to "4>cal taxation accounts being transferred to the Civil Estimates. If other items in the Consolidated Fund charges remain at last year's figures and provision for the sinking fund is not reduced, the expenditure under these heads would be £364,000,000. which would bring the total expenditure in Mr Snowden's forthcoming Budget to £782.000.000, as compared with a total of £742,000,000 in that Budget. This shows an increase of £40.000,000. Of the increased expenditure, £15,000.000 transferred to the Civil Estimates is attributable to the relief or local taxation under the legislation of the late Government. This can be met out of the relief susnense account, which at present has a balance of about £20,000,000. The sum of £25.000.000 of the increased expenditure would have to be met out. of ordinary sources of revenue. Whether the Chancellor of the Exchequer, when he makes his Budget statement on April 14. will find it necessary to impose new taxation is the subject of serious discussion in the Press.—British Official "Wireless.