SURPLUS OF £1,315,683

Evening Star, Issue 18257, 23 April 1923, Page 3

SURPLUS OF £1,315,683

FINE REVENUE RECOVERY. £5,000.000 FOUND FOR DEBT REDUCTION. ECONOMY STILL NECESSARY. Details of tho country's financial position were given at meetings addressed by the Prime Minister at Pukcuri and Papakalo on Saturday night, and tributes of recognition were paid to Hr Massey by the audiences at both meetings. "I don’t suppose,” said Mr Massey, “there is anyono in New Zealand more pleased than 1 am at tho very satisfactory improvement of tho finances of the country. The position to-day is that wo have a surplus of £1,315,683.” —(Applause.) The ordinary revenue for tho year, he said, was £27,597,443, being £547,564 kss than the revenue received in tho previous year, but £1,329,443 in excess of the estimated revenue. The principal increases over last year’s revenue were Customs, £936,856; beer duty, £153,230; stamps and death duties, £136,787; railways, £36,628; miscellaneous, £68,367; departmental and other receipts, £416,009. Tho last item was a nominal increase duo to tho amended system of accounting. Against these increases there was tho an ticipal.cd decrease in land and income tax of £2,267,369, Tho reduction in taxation rates were estimated to equal ihe sum of £929.100; but notwithstanding this tho tax actually received was only £226,506 short of tho estimate. EXPENDITURE DECREASED BY TWO MILLIONS.

Tho total expenditure out of the ordinary revenue account under the permanent charges and annual appropriations amounted to £26,263,760, being £2,203,078 less than tho expenditure for tho previous year, and £1,851,946 less than the amount appropriated by Parliament. The expenditure under the three main heads was as tolknvs: Civil List and Special Acts, £4,073,957; interest and sinking fund charges, £8,899,957; annual appropriaiions, £13,289,846, incluindg £141,171 paid off the debt on account of iho Imperial Funded Debt. Compared with tho previous year the decreases were;—Civil List and Special -lets, £357.926; annual voles, £2,302,831 —a gross decrease of £2,660,757, which, less an increase in the interest and sinking fund charges of £457,679, left the net doorcase as mentioned above at £2.203,078. Tho decrease in expenditure in annual appropiatinns and under Special Acts therefore (apart from interest and sinking fund charges) was £2,660,757, indicating still further tho administrative savings effected. The decrease; in departmental expenditure were common to practically all the votes, the principal being: Working expenses, £335,145: public buildings, £31,217; defence and naval, £222.629: lands and survey, £63,295; Customs, £33,123; railways, £1,527,053; education. £65,571; agriculture, £66,979; marine, £34 491 SURPLUS ANALYSED. Tho result of the above, therefore, was as followsßevenue, £27,579,443: expenditure. £26,263,760; surplus, £1,315,683. This was duo principally to two outstanding facts; —First; the recovery in all sources of revenue except land and income tax, the decrease ot which was anticipated; and, secondly, the reductions effected by the policy of economy exercised throughout all departments during tho year. It had been necessary to make use of Treasury Bill issues in anticipation of revenue on one occasion, and then only to tho extent of £250,000. Thcso were duly redeemed at the close of the year, and there were then no Treasury bills outstanding. ORDINARY REVENUE ACCOUNT. The result, of iho operations of the ordinary revenue account for iho year 102223 showed that tho balance brought forward on April 1, 1922, was £7,531,367. The revenue during the year amounted to £27,579,443 and tho expenditure (permanent charges and appropriations) to £26,263.760, leaving a surplus for the. year of £1,315,683, and making a todil to credit of £8,847,050. From this sum had to bo deducted—payments to Loans Redemption Account for the redemption and cancellation of securities, £3,159,960; transfer to the Discharged Soldiers’ Depreciation Fund, £50,000 —making a total of £3,209,960. Tho balance at March 31, 1923, was therefore £5,637,090. PUBLIC WORKS FUND, Tho expenditure out of the Public Works Fund amounted to £3,850,048, compared with £5,286,687 in 1921-22, which was an exceptionally heavy year, duo largely to postwar accumulations. PUBLIC DEBT. Tho Public Debt at March 31, 1922, was approximately £219,000,000, of which some £81,000,000 was war debt. During the year the amount of £5,235,540 was raised for public works and other purposes. Tho gross debt at Mar.Oi 31, 1923, however, remained practically tho same —viz., £219,000,000, a result duo to applying the surplus cash in the ordinary revenue and ether accounts to the redemption or purchase and cancellation of securities. The ordinary revenue account furnished £3.159,960, and other accounts £1,867,000. Thus Iho total redemptions and cancellations resulting from these sourccc, approximately equalled the new loans other than those raised for redemption purposes, The position was, therefore, that the year's transactions showed; 1. A surplus of £1,315,683 in the Ordinary Revenue Account. 2. A sum of £5,023,960 from the Ordinary Revenue Account and other accounts had been found for debt reduction. 3. A fiitrn of £5,850.048 had been spent ont of tho Public Works Fund, whiio the outstanding Public Debt remained approximately unaltered. 4. Sinking Fund obligations and funded debt reductions wore fully maintained by tho payment of £1,000,000 out of ordinary revenue. Tho result 'of ihe year's operations, read together with the overseas trade figures and bank returns, gave abundant proof of the recuperative powers of the country. The sound financial position attained should be regarded as a means of freeing trade and commerce from (.be onerous conditions brought through high taxation rather than as an indication that further economy was not needed. Although our rate of expenditure had been reduced it is still much in excess of pre-war standards.