GOVERNMENTS SHORT OF MONEY.

Press, Volume LVI, Issue 16946, 22 September 1920, Page 8

GOVERNMENTS SHORT OF MONEY.

SCHEMES FOB "RAISING THE WIND" IN AUSTRALIA. (fbou our own correspondent.) SYDNEY, September 7. The Australian Governments, Federal and St-ato, are moro hard pressed for money at tho prcseot time than ever beforo in all their history. There is very little to be got in London, except at rates which are startling, and yet their obligations are huge and pressing. So all sorts of schemes for "raising the wind" are under consideration.

The Federal Government is thinking about "a luxuries tax." The idea was put before the Prime Minister by a deputation from the Victorian Housewives' Association. It was suggested that one cause of the high cost of liring was extravagant spending on luxuries, and it was proposed that a tax be placed on all articles which might fairly be classed as luxuries. Iliis would have the two-fold effect of forcing many peoplo, to curtail their expenditure, and of providing the Government with a welcome source of revenue. The Prime Minister, to everyone's surprise—for Ministers generally treat such proposals with smiling, half-con-temptuous tolerance—was much interested in the id<\a, and asked- a lot of questions. He finally said that the Government had not had su-Mi a schema before it, but it was certainly worthy of consideration.

The New South Wales Labour Government —which has promis.-d to do all sorts of things requiring largo sums of money, but which is unable to find money even to meet current obligations —is, in a financial sense busily chasing its tail and arriving nowhere. Cabinet is sitting to-day and is understood to be considering various schemes of raising money. The Treasurer has elaborated a scheme of State lotteries on a scale even greater than Tattefsall's sweeps. The winners are to bo paid with Treasury bonds, bearing a large' rate of interest, and redeemable in ten years. The' Treasurer estimates that this will make some millions of pounds [ per year available to the Treasury, be- ' sides keeping in this State the hugo sums which now flow out to TattersalPs consultations in Tasmania. Tattersall's officially, is illegal and not recognised; actually, everyone* from the duke's son to the policeman and -the kitchen-boy, has "a ticket in Tatt.'s." • The Stato Treasurer argues therefore that the out* cry against his schcme "because it. encourages gambling" is sheer rank hypocrisy. The Treasurer proposes that there shall be 40 consultations a year, each of 100,000 5s tickets, which would produce £1.000,000 gross. Of .this , £7-50,000 would be returned to the win-/ ners, in bonds (the cash lemaining for ten yenr3 in the Treasury), and the Government would keep the balance of; £250,000.