The Gisborne Times PUBLISHED DAILY. THURSDAY, JULY 31, 1924. THE PROPOSED REDUCTION OF TAXATION

Gisborne Times, Volume LXI, Issue 9771, 31 July 1924, Page 4

The Gisborne Times PUBLISHED DAILY. THURSDAY, JULY 31, 1924. THE PROPOSED REDUCTION OF TAXATION

The Budget debate, which opened on Tuesday should prove more than usually interesting. It will not be contested that the national balance sheet, on this occasion, discloses a very healthy financial state of affairs. How can tlie contrary bo said when . a surplus of over £1,800.000 is shown without taking into account tlie fact that £542,000 (interest duo from the Soldiers’ Settlement Fund) has not been taken into consideration? What is, however, n'ow exciting much comment is why an even heavier reduction in taxation than is promised, viz. remissions to the extent of £l,000,000, cannot be made. In this regard, it may be pointed out that Mr Massey’s estimate as to the national revenue last year proved to be quite close to the mark, hut, extraordinary ■as it may seem, his estimate of the expenditure proved too high by over £1,250,000. By way of explanation, what is claimed is that the Government, by a system of rigid economy, was able to lessen expenditure. But let us consider the Minister for Finance’s estimates for the current year. As far as the national revenue is concerned lie reckons that, on the basis of last year, it would amount to about £1,000,000 more than for that period 1 and that the expenditure too should be. put down at a correspondingly higher figure. So, in order to balance matters—-or nearly so, for the Supplementary Estimates have not yet been prepared- —lie proposes to reduce taxation by cutting out the extra £1,000,000 of revenue which will not be required. On this basis of calculation, the national ledger for the current year should come out just about square, or with a small balance to the 1 good. But it may be recalled that

that was exactly what was held to have been planned in respect of 192324, and yet the Government found

itself, at the c-lcse of its year, with a surplus not far short of £2,000,000! In the circumstances, strong efforts should he made to draw Mr Massey out during the current debate on the point as to how it is that he

comes to reckon that national ex-

! penditurc this year will increase by | such a large amount ) even if a con- ; siderable amount of wheat requires ; to bo bought, unless it so happens I that the Government’s economy cami paign has now reached a halt. As far i as we can make out, the exports for | the season that is ahead will at least j reach the aggregate value of those of ! last season and, consequently, the import trade is likely also to show' a ' distinct further advance in volume, i How, then, does Mr Massey intend to i adjust his taxation remissions so that . the largest possible number may ; secure relief? Mr Massey prefers to I keep that matter a secret meantime. | And why? Because he wants to hear • the opinions of members during the ! debate before he makes his final 1 decisions! They do things under this particular heading much better in

thc Mother Country. In strict fact,

within a very few weeks after the close of the national year, the British Budget comes down, replete with the taxation proposals for the then current year. A a result, the taxpayers get to know just where they stand early in the business year. The amount of taxation which the Go-

vernment proposes to remit will simply be the extra amount of taxation which it stood to derive as the

result of the increasing prosperity. Still it can be rightly labelled a mission of taxation.