£800,000 OVER

Auckland Star, Volume LXX, Issue 99, 29 April 1939, Page 10

£800,000 OVER

HIGH REVENUE.

BUDGET SURPLUS. THIRD ON END EXPECTATIONS EXCEEDED. INCOME TAX DECREASE. (li.y 'lVli'uriiiili. .... Piths \HNiirlaHon.) W'KT,I.IXCTOV, this day. In a. statement issued to-day hy the Minister of Kiuance, the Hon. VV. Nash, thei" it a preliminary announcement rcyarding the public accounts for t lie year ended .March :il last:. "I have pleiMiire in announcing," he plates, "that the public accounts for the lust, li mi ncia I year luivo more tlmn fulfilled (iovernmeiit expectations, with the result, that the surplus will be in the vicinity of ,US(H1,000. This amount is, of course, ii pre I inquiry estimate of the position And milijeet to tlio completion of accounts and tlin usual audit, verification. Detailed results will he published in the Gazette at it later date as in previous years. "The revenue for thn year totalled approximately iiJIII.fIOO.OOO apd exceeded the Ihidgefc estimate by approximately £700,000, of wliieh taxation alone was responsible for .£OOO,OOO. Thiu Customs taxation, beer duty and Hales tax toget l.ier const it ute,| a. surplux of approximately £000,000 nnd stump and death duties i, 100,000, which wero offset to the extent of .£200.000 by a tailing off in income tux, while highways taxation was mainly responsible for the balance of £200,000, The reduction in income tax revenun is attributable to disorganisation caused by tho recent transfer of the Department to more commodious premises nnd the consequent 1b te Issue of numbers of income tax demands. Tn siieh eases, of course, the current year's revenue will receive tho benefit. Other Hems of revenue, namely, Interest, recoveries and miscellaneous receipts, adhered very closely to the Budget estimates. "Tn regard to expenditure permanent appropriations accounted for £14,400,000 and annual votes for £21,400,000. a total of £3'1,800,000, which correspond* with tho total amount, appropriated for the year, namely, £35,800,000. As regards 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 wero offset by additional expenditure under annual votes to the extent of £700,000. Included in the excess expenditure under annual vote?, however, i* a transfer of £272.000 to the Dairy Industry Account to cancel indebtedness in the account resulting from a deficit in the guaranteed price i for dairy produce during the IM6-37 season. "In brief," Mr. Nasli explained, "the surplus arises mainly from additional revenue, which indicates in turn the prosperous conditions 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."