TAX RECEIPTS AHEAD OF BUDGET ESTIMATE

Press, Volume XCVII, Issue 28528, 6 March 1958, Page 12

TAX RECEIPTS AHEAD OF BUDGET ESTIMATE

(New Zealand Press Association)

WELLINGTON, March 5. With the exception of income tax, receipts from taxation were running a little ahead of the nine months’ proportion of the Budget estimate, the Minister of Finance. (Mr Nordmeyer) said tonight when he released the Public Accounts for the nine months to the end of last December. Customs duties and sales tax were ahead of the estimate, he said. Other receipts were a little behind, but in the final quarter, as inter-departmental transactions were completed, the Budget estimates should be realised. Receipts from Social Security charge, also subject to end-of-year improvement, were in much the same position, compared with the Budget estimate, as they were last year. The following tables show expenditure and receipts to December 31 last, compared with the same period for 1956-57: Consolidated Fund RECEIPTS 1957-58 1956-57 £'ooo £’ooo Customs duties .. 23,857 22,116 Sales tax .. 16,361 15,231 Income tax .. 17,989 '23,191 Other taxes .. 21,103 16,863 Other receipts .. 21,884 21,209 Total receipts .. 98,194 98,610 EXPENDITURE Debt services .. 19,101 17,225 Stabilisation .. 10,112 9,846 Defence .. 15,778 14,847 Social servicees .. 51,225 47,923 Other expenditure .. 36.293 35,434 Total expenditure 132,509 125,275 Social Security Fund RECEIPTS Social security charge 44,123 40,690 Transfer from consolidated fund .. 2,000 Other receipts .. 197 173 Total receipts .. 44,320 42,865 EXPENDITURE Monetary benefits .. 39,293 36,867 Medical, hospital, etc., benefits .. 12,948 12,607 Other expenditure .. 1,388 1,183 Total expenditure 53,629 50,657 On the expenditure side, said Mr Nordmeyer, votes subject to annual appropriation generally, approximated their due proportion of the estimates, despite substantial increases in social ser-

vices and defence compared with last year. Education was up by £2 million, public hospitals by £2 million, health administration by nearly £750,000 and defence by £1 million.

Of the other departments, the only ones showing appreciable increases were Justice, Police and Stabilisation, approximately £750,000 in total. “After allowing for the fact that at this time last year a transfer of £2 million had been made from the Consolidated Fund to the Social Security Fund with no such transfer this year, the position of the Consolidated Fund is well in accord with Budget estimates. The figures for the Social Security Fund indicate a similar position,” he said. "So far as capital works are concerned, though £2O million of loan money has been transferred to the various construction accounts, compared with £16.5 million last year (the increase being mainly to electric supply account), it is Expected that actual works expenditure will generally be up to the Budget by the end of the year.”