MUCH REVENUE FROM BETTING

Press, Volume LXXI, Issue 21506, 22 June 1935, Page 16

MUCH REVENUE FROM BETTING

SOUTH AUSTRALIA'S EXPERIENCE BUDGET MAY BALANCE (fEOM OClt OWN OOKRESrOKDEBT.) SYDNEY, June 14. It seems that South Australia is going to be the first of the Australian states to balance its budget since the depression began. A small surplus is expected when the financial year Hnds on June 30. This result will be largely due to the "betting boom." Betting in South Austral.a, where bookmakers now operate legally, both on and off the course, is increasing remarkably every month, and there is no way of gauging when the peak is likely to be reached. Revenue from stamp duty on betting tickets to May 31 amounted to £64,000. This fully justifies a recent estimate that the yield from taxation on bettng stamp duty and the 2 per cent, turn-over tax combined will reach the rate of £160,000 in a full year. The number of betting tickets represented by the revenue collected for the 11 months of the financial year is remarkable. Up till the end of November, when the stamp tax on bets up to 10s was reduced from one penny to a half-penny, the numher of penny tickets issued was 6,984,000. From then on until the end of May, 12,657,000 half-penny tickets were issued. The number of threepenny tickets—for bets of more than 10s issued from July 1 to May 31 was 861,000. Thus for the 11 months bookmakers handled 20,502,500 tickets, of which only about 4 per cent, were required for bets in excess of 10s. Although the Government's receipts from its totalisator percentage are declining, the loss is insignificant compared with gains from other gambling resources. Revenue from the totalisator for the 11 months ended May 31 was £21,784. compared with £25,845 for the corresponding period last year. For the last full financial year totalisator receipts were £3l,9o3—less than the amount received from stamp duty on betting tickets for the first six months after the legislation permitting bookmakers.

r£ h R e n n b n ud E et * f <° recast a deficit of £518,000, but the Acting-Premier, oir George Kitchie, told the Loan Council last month that the figures would be reduced to £200.000 On examining the treasury accounts for May after his return to Adelaide he found the revenue so buoyant that (he deficit if any, is certain to be considerably below £2OO 000 Treasury officials will not be surprised if the budget is balanced