THE BUDGET.

Press, Volume LXII, Issue 18677, 28 April 1926, Page 9

THE BUDGET.

5 Trade Improving. | [ rig debt reduction. K SIP 1 ' Ipmates Based on Peace Footing If gan our way . fairly clearly to finance the next two Ife: jj U t to most meet emergencies courageously as they PfaVn waß Mr Winston Churchill's summing up of Britain's lllfrfrfal position, when presenting the 1926-27 Budget to the Commons. new provisions contain, amongst other things, an exof Empire Preference measures for ten years, the instiiltafJoA of g betting tax of five per cent, on every stake made on or through the credit bookmaker, and a heavy duty itfdttported wrapping paper. The new taxes are estimated to Jfraw!? approximately £22,000,000, giving a surplus of

'"lirajTCnfU AWOCUTIOjr—COPI3UOHT.) WOMQIkUU.) ~ ipril 27th, 7.15 p.m.) LONDON, April 26. second Budget in the Mr Winston t that Customs and fallen short of the |ffipiOOQ.OOO. The nation fwW" l i** lae °' utj whil ® was steadily improvimportant sections were ' 'MmIMSwI 0 profits were mm'tirn rubber and tin,'the oftfce : country were depressed. The j»o----14"» r less prorrnf§|»H inland revenue waa L ' iwffi tbtft' a&d income-tax waa uidir:<lw estimate. This bmpWF by the improvestriking feature was that We £6)250,000 below above the es.in the superHHP'klMttir and more effirevenue ioover the estimates. - a net eurexpenditure, of wmo; but for the coal subresponsible for

1 Betting Taxes. He analysed the anomalies in the present betting laws under which cash betting was logal on a racecourse, but illgal elsewhere, and emphasised that there was one law for the rich, and another for the poor. He did not propose to alter the law, because he was not looking for trouble, but the revenue from the proposed tax would be five per cent on every stake on a racecourse or through the credit bookmaker, from November Ist. It was suggested that the bookmaker would recover the tax from his clients by certain shortening of the odds. He estimated that the betting tax would produce £1,500,000 this year, and £6,000,000 for the full year. The Chancellor announced an import duty of 16 2-3 per cent on wrapping paper, and said it had been decided to extend the MoKenna duties to cover

commercial motor-oars. This was largely in order to simplify the Customs formalities, since only one-tenth of the commercial ears in Britain were imported, while the exports exceeded the foreign imports. It was proposed to re-enaot for a perod of ten yearg Fart I. of the Safeguarding of Industries Act, which would otherwise lapse this year. .Relating to essential factors of national defence, which nobody had ever seriously disputed since the war, the Chancellor extolled the superiority and quality of British roads as compared with amy equal area in the world. He announced that the increased tax-1 ation of heavy motor-lorries, rubberiess tyred charabancs, and hackney vehicles bad been producing £2,350,000 for the full year. Mr Churchill said that the fund for

repayment for • lading £4,000,000 i jjjiirther continuous i

the upkeep of the roads to which the motor taxes had hitherto been allocated, at present had a reserve of £19,000,000. The Treasury proposed to appropriate £7,000,000 of this sum, and henceforth take one-third of all motor taxation, which would be devoted to general, revenue. Then cajpe what he characterised as a peculiarly refreshing windfall, namely the reduction of the three months' oredit hitherto granted to the brewer for the payment of duty, to two months. This would produce a once-for-all payment of £5,600,000. Trench Debt Payment.

■04,700,000. 1 deficit of

The Ghanoellor said he bad received an assurance from M. Peret, French Finance Minister, that without preju-dice-to the impending settlement of the French debt, EVance had undertaken tbe payment of £4,000,000 during the coining year on the sole oredit of France. This -was a practical step which showed that M. Perefs desire to arrive at a settlement was a good augury of tbe coming discussion. The Bouse should welcome it as proof of the determination of the financial power of France to strengthen her credit by the proper regulation of her externa] debt.

revenue ■■fe^^^fcdeam The r V .a ViSlh

Summing up, the Chancellor showed that the new taxes would produce ap- | proximately £22,000,000, which, after the deduction of the prcspective deficit of £7,900,000 on the present basis, left a surplus of £14,150,000. "What shall we do with- it?" Mr Churchill asked He added that he had. resisted the sore temptation to grant a remission of taxation. The statutory sinking fund of £50,000,000 had been reduced to £36,000,000 last year, owing to the deficit of £14,000,000 due to the coal subsidy. This year an additional £10,000,000 would be allocated to the sinking fund, leaving a surplus of £4,109,000. Three millions of the surplus would be earmarked for the purpose of tapering the coal subsidy, and for other purposes! He pointed out that the Estimates were based on a peace footing, whereas, in the event of a prolonged paralysis of industry overwhelming them, he would have to propose supplementary taxation which, at present, he thought it right to state, would comprise substantia] increases in direct and indirect taxation. Mr Churchill concluded: "Apart from unforeseen events, we can see our way fairly clearly to finance the next two years, but we must meet emergencies courageously as they arise."