REVENUE FROM PETROL TAX

Press, Volume XCVII, Issue 28728, 28 October 1958, Page 19

REVENUE FROM PETROL TAX

Rise Not As Great As Expected ”The Press” Special Service WELLINGTON, Oct. 26. Revenue from petrol tax has increased during the last six months, but the rise has not been as much as was expected by the National Roads Board. The six-monthly accounts from April 1 to September 30 considered by the board at its meeting recently showed that net revenue from petrol tax for the period was £6,725,010, compared with £6,363,039 last year. The Minister of Works (Mr Watt), chairman of the board, asked If the Increase was as much as expected. The Director of Roading (Mr W. F. Young) replied that the increase was less than was hoped for following higher prices for petrol. The accounts included three months of petrol tax returns at the higher rates. Gross petrol tax for the six months was £7,978,348, with a rebate of £1,253,338, giving a net total of £6,725,010. Figures for the same period last year were: Gross, £7,585,963; rebate, £1,222,924; net total, £6,363,039. The total petrol tax revenue last year after rebates had been given was £14,598,909. The desire for music that was rich in bass as well as treble tones led men to invent strange instruments. The big tubas in today’s orchestra are a far cry from their ancestors, the serpents, produced in 1590 by a Frenchman named Guillaume. The tube curved back and forth like a writhing reptile eight feet long.