Budget Shock is Unprecedented Tobacco Tax

Grey River Argus, 17 April 1947, Page 5

Budget Shock is Unprecedented Tobacco Tax

LONDON, April 16.

The increased duty, making Britain’s cigarettes twopence each retail, was the shock of Dr. Dalton’s budget, speech. There were gasps in the House of Commons when Dr Dalton announced his startingly heavy tobacco tax. The budget is described in the Parliamentary lobbies and in the press as a “Less Smoking” and “No Smoking Budget.” Comments of the tobacco interests included that of an Imperial Tobacco Company spokesman, who said: “It is a staggering increase in the duty. The smokers with lower incomes will be particularly hard hit.” Mr S. Phillips, director of Godfrey, Phillips, Limited, said: "It is a great shock to the public. It will be a miracle if it does not reduce the consumption of cigarettes. _ There never has been a price rise approaching this one.” The president of the Retail Tobacconists’ Union said: “There is little doubt this new duty will reduce the consumption and the imports of Virginian tobacco. The tobacconist must face a serious decrease in his sales. The union is advising the retailers to charge the new prices from to-morrow. It says that the public’s pocket has been strained too much. The working man is hit particularly.” x The Conservative Party’s Finance Committee has dissected the budget and has decided that, apart from the income tax reduction, which has mainly affected wage earners, . there did not seem to be any incentives in it for anybody. The new tobacco duty has shocked the committee, which felt that it has discriminated against the smoker, while the spectator of the American films did not contribute.”

Some of the Opposition critics would have liked the Imperial preference ratio retained for tobacco, but it is believed that this would be impossible under the American loan agreement. Some of the Labour members would have preferred tobacco rationing to the new exorbitant tax,