The Press Friday, April 17, 1931. The Second Finance Bill.

Press, Volume LXVII, Issue 20214, 17 April 1931, Page 10

The Press Friday, April 17, 1931. The Second Finance Bill.

We priijt thif Primp Minister's of tj}e seflqjid pill. It sho\f|, thfj; |;be ijponoijjy flomipitt§e has pnf; the Bfl?ew m a gre&t Departcaepts and rearranged some of them so as to reduce staffs and administrative expenditure; and in general there is little to be said about tjje§p methods of saving, except that they ought to have been pursued long: agp. Whether the Committee has everywhere savsd wisely is a question which answered Tjjitii the pfure pf various saving? is explained —for instance, the Health Department's of £28,800, the Agricultural qf £29,800, an<J the Scientific and Industrial Research Deof £15 ? 80Q; but the saving is in the aggregate by no means so great as to suggest that the Committee <s|n §sorfi tq fee'jfjlp during tjie intervalbpfpre the Budget, or that tb§ country can afford to let it be. 3pJven if Mr Forbes in one of the few hopeful pftssftges of his speech did nqfc himself admit that there is still work for the Committee to do, this would have to be iipsted ljpon. His %i#<3§ very clfigrly sl}ois why. His February estimate of tfre_ Budget shortage has now to be raised by a million pounds, from £4,SQO,Qf}O to £5,500,000, jinfi this is not all that must be provided for. ssysnpe will to an ijnestimated extent by the disaster" in pay, wlj|le the taxpayer will have to stand the cost of the Unemployment Board's experiment in living bgyonji its insopip. tfeig.^gijnt pf £5,500,0Q0 ancj ftfiditipns Mr Forbes has definitely provided £3,332,000. He must therefore still find from £3,2SQ,QQQ to $3,000,000, and has ip prqgppsf; unassegsefj sav|ng due tp. »jpaig»mil<;ing further economies, and taxation. Since the first can cover at be§t qnjy a fciflipgpart of the shortage, there is nothing to save the frpjn ptafgfripg &ew J)Ufdens, except new economies, and the responsibility of making them teste at present on-the Committee, in wjiich it is to feel muck Qonflflejjce. In Jj\el>jrpayy Mr Forbes outlined- a Budget programme, under which tjjp Gpvprningnt tp. sfve £1,5Q0,000 qif. salaries gpd make economies and adjustments worth £1,250,000. To-day the economies and adjustments announced are worth only £I,Q3Q,QQO. Indeed the whole px'o* bag flippy jwfiJs by £B3Q,QQP while the shortage has increased by ,a million or more. That ia |o wy, alibopgK tjjg jt\s s&Bifly wank % Oawmitlw did not cnt deeper, but actually failed by . a considerable margin to dq jWM pf • 3sp Fqrbeg must jjgm W *"44? ft WWW " iMgffc Orivfie bpis Tyi)i J>f to raise; taxation to disastrous heights; He may do that, -or he may take froin J»i# own : words—tbiit " much still remains to be faced " —and face the obligation of cutting expendi* twre gjtill mow severely. The Comdq ejge its whole plan of attack on the problem. It may be necessary to go outside Parliament and the limits of political courage-and knowledge for the will' and skill' required for- enph a taslp. Ap Rripe Ministerand Minister fop Fqrfcei* & hestpl&pe4 does np|r bysueh a decieiop shape evpnts fpr' $e Jjette?, Jesvfflg then} in?|eqd tq tajrt their prggept <soun?«, Bndgfit «Mnwofc be snytbrng bnt a blgw 4q pf jfipid