THE BRITISH BUDGET.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume LXV, Issue LXV, 24 April 1913, Page 5

THE BRITISH BUDGET.

UNEVENTFUL AND BRIEF

\t LABIiI—PBEBB ASSOCIATION—COPYRIGHT. LONDON, April 23. The Budget speech was uneventful and biiet. It was stated that the overseas trade had reached its highest point. The home trade was the heaviest oa record. The coal strike had caused a loss of revenue of £550,000, while the withholding of stocks of tea, sugar, and tobacco, in anticipation of reduction in the duty, had depressed the revenue by £450,000. Although eight million gallons less spirits had been consumed during the last four years, the higher duties had produced an increase of ' £2,000,000 last year. The expenditure exceeded the estimate by £4,671,000, due chiefly to unforeseen naval increases and additional medical remuneration under the Insurance Bill. The expenditure in nearly every country had rushed up alarmingly through the growth of armamerts, and there were small prospects of retarding it. The Treasurer confidently relied on the normal growth of revenue to meet the increased expenditure of 1913, Avith the exception of £815,000, which would be met by taking the million unspent by the Admiralty in 1912. It is anticipated that increases from sjurits and beer will be £922,000; from tea and sugar £619,000; and from tobacco £905,000. The national debt is being decreased by £12,000,000 annually. Io is proposed to reinstitute tho practice of two Finance Bills, one dealing with taxes and the other with amendments of the law. Mr Austen Chamberlain viewed with anxiety that they were not profiting by the good time, but were spending tvery penny and mortgaging every penny of further income, while not increasing the reserve to meet bad times. He criticised the disappointing land value duty, which had resulted in a return of £90,000 below the estimate in two years. The old sinking fund had been robbed of £3,000,000 to provide for commitmente. lie agreed that the armament expenditure was beyond the Government's eootpqjLj but it was different with regard to .civil expenditure. Old age pensions had proved double the amount originafiy sstimated. Something similar had oceu?%red in connection with the Insurance Bill. He hoped the Government would consider the severance of insurance administration from the Treasury. The Chancellor was ovei'-sanguine regarding the estimates of 1913.