STATE FINANCE

Dominion, Volume 18, Issue 113, 5 February 1924, Page 6

STATE FINANCE

PROSPECTS OF SURPLUS REVENUE AND COMMITMENTS SINKING FUND PAYMENTS CONSERVATIVE ESTIMATES Although the present quarter is the real balancing period for the Dominion's finances, there would appear to be good reason to expect that the anticipations of the Minister of Finance, that the State ledgers will Just balance, will be more than realised, and that a fairly healthy surplus of revenue over expenditure will be forthcoming. Subsequent returns of income and outgo afford an improved chance of assessing tbe possible result of the balancing period in the finances of the State. The details of the Consolidated Revenue Fund to date, that is, for the nine months of the present financial year, to the end of December, indicate that estimates on both sides of the national ledger have been cau tious, or conservative, and it would hot anpear difficult to forecast that, even with reductions that may be ex pected in the usual revenue for the March quarter, rendered necessary by last session’s remissions ,of taxation, and fairly heavy commitments that have to be met before March 31, the Financial Statement will disclose an addition to the surpluses that have characterised Mr. Masse v’s administration for many years past. The amount of revenue received during tlie nine months was £18,210,924, or an increase of £921,058 over the corresponding period of the previous year. The expenditure totalled £18,997,259, as against £19,189,457— a reduction of £192,198 net. With particulars made available, subsequent to the brief statement of the Finance Minister, the details of revenue 'and expenditure are as follow: — REVENUE.

Grand total £18,997,259 £19.189,457 The estimate of revenue for the current financial year was set down at £27,969,000, and of expenditure at .£27,277,644. The bulk of the revenue from taxation sources will be credited to the Consolidated Fund during the presen? quarter, therefore the effect of the remissions in land and income tax during the last session of Parliament has yet to bo seen. It is too early even to forecast what the loss in revenue will be, for the concessions in iand tax were estimated to show a greater decrease than rctually resulted at the end of December. Towards the estimated Customs revenue of £7,000,000 no less than £5,329,545 has been credited at the end of December; it is therefore safe to assume that the Customs revenue will aggregate £B,000,000 for the year, as it could not have been anticipated when the Estimate was prepared that the imports would reach the proportions they have realised. The same factors in trade — large importations of soft goods and the increased duty on alcoholic liquors and other luxuries —are present now as were experienced during the last five months of the previous financial year; and there is, in addition, a very large import of motor vehicles, from which the revenue of the Customs will be enhanced. The railways, vhich were £183,475 to the good in the nine months’ period ended December 31, may expect a larger revenue for the closing quarter of the year, due to the movement of produce and wheat which takes place at this time. The postal revenue suffered a loss of £85,900 dur ing the nine months; it was estimated that there would be a total loss of £125,000 between October 1 last and the end of March, owing to the re-' establishment by New Zealand of penny postage to all parts of the British Empire. The expenditure on permanent charges and annual ippropriations shows a net decrease of £192,198 for the nine months ended December 31. During the financial year ’922-23 there was a net decrease in ixpenditure of £2,203,078, but, as was pointed out by Mr. Massey in his Financial Statement, further savings at that rate could not be looked for if the services of the country were to be effectively maintained and adequate provision made for growing needs. During the closing quarter of the present financial year there is a charge to be met, amounting to about £BOO,OOO, out of Consolidated Revenue, under the Repayment of Public Debt Bill passed last session by Parliament. Under the new Act there will be issued annually out of the Consolidated Fund a sum

equal to one-half per cent, of the debt affected by the Act. After the funding of £26,000,000 of Imperial war debt, the net public debt affected by the Act at its passing was set down at £173,000,000.

Customs 1923. £ 5,329,545 1922. £ 4,240,384 Duties 2,457,939 2,483,474 Post and Telegraph 2,127,024 2,212,321 Land Tax 1,346,658 1.427,495 Income Tax ,...i. 537,866 344.705 Beer Duty 443,613 439,781 Railways 4,886,166 4,702,691 Registration and other Fees .... 119,553 100,462 Miscellaneous ... 613,030 893,837 61.950 34,499 Territorial 126,151 108,936 National Endowm$nt ....' Nil 95,157 Other receipts ... 161,429 206,124 Total revenue £18,210,924 £17,289,860 PERMANENT CHARGES. 1923. 1922. £ £ Civil List 21,179 20,599 Debt charges .... 7,180,312 6,999,722 Pensions, Special Acts, and other Items 2,390,809 2,464,278 Total £9,592,300 £9,484,599 APPROPRIATIONS. £ £ Railways 3,405,016 3,716,008 Post and Telegraph 1,476,770 1,473,570 Police 232,213 229,147 Pensions 111,061 99,557 Internal Affairs . 209,009 250,482 Printing, etc. ... 117,293 109,419 Mental Hospitals 211,659 201,275 Education 1,953.284 1,894,764 Health 148,322 232,566 Agriculture 153,325 166,281 Naval Defence .. 168,599 98,329 Lands and Survey 142,291 137,493 Defence 237,199 204,307 Other items 838,918 891,660 Total £9,404,959 £9,704,858