INTERVIEW WITH MR CYRUS WILLIAMS.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CXVII, Issue 17198, 19 June 1916, Page 9

INTERVIEW WITH MR CYRUS WILLIAMS.

LOCAL WAR, LOANS SOUND PRINCIPLE. The professional class, perhaps, will he more deeply affected by the •Budget proposals than any. other class in tho community, and Air Cyrus Williams, secretary to tho Lyttelton Harbour Board, discussed several aspects of the questions Sir Joseph Ward's Statement lias made prominent. Mr Williams began by saying 'that he was pleased that tho Minister of Finance had modified his opposition to the demand that New Zealand should help the imperial Government, by raising local war loans. Tho announcement lie made in iliat direction on Friday night, apparently, merely represented an instalment of tho policy of the future. On the. face of it, it scorned that tho New Zealand Government was borrowing money locally at 1 \ per cent to lend it to the Imperial Government at f) per cent, but that was not actually the ease, because, on account of concessions given to tlioso who took up local loans, the Government was paying more than 4} per cent, hut how much more nobody know. * Tho New Zealand war loan raised last year was freo of income tax. and people who invested in it, apparently, had been given a. gift of tho difference between last year's income tax and tho new income tax. lj was reasonable to suppose that those who invested in future new local loans would reccivo still more valuable gifts, because there was a tendency for the income tax to increase, not decrease. The real position was that people who were asked to take up local war loans were invited to enter a gamble in which tho community must lose. The only speculative element was tho extent of the community’s loss. The value of the concessions on the loans should bo assessed once for nil as nearly as possible—lie admitted that it was a difficult thing to assess—and the value then should be added to the interest paid. If the idea or giving concessmns was to keep the interest nominally at -If per cent, the object could be attained by callijug it a 41 per cent loan, and selling it at a discount. Tn spite of that objection, Mr MiHiums said, lie was pleased to find that Sir Joseph Ward acknowledged flic soundness of the principle that war loans should bo raised locally. INCOME TAX SHOULD HAVE —SLIDING SCALE. As to the income tax proposals. Mr A\ illinms said that it would bo more equitable io have a sliding scale. The Minister evidently felt that the exemption limit was too high. Tt> was regrettable that ho did not reduce it ; but perhaps he hoped that before tho necessity for taking that step arrived the war would be over. The working classes were not suffering materially, if at all, on account of the war. In response to what they termed “tho increased cost of living,” they received periodical additions to their wages through the Arbitration Court. All the increased taxes, in fact, wore being thrown on the backs of the salaried people, of those engaged in manufactures, and ol' those whose incomes came from investments. .IMPORTANT POINT RAISED. As to the increased revenue from Customs Air Williams believes that it is largely accounted for by peculiar operations under the Customs Act. For instance, Customs officers, in assessing duties to be paid, seem to value imports on the basis of what the officers consider is the increased cost of production at. l-he present time. They ignore tlio fact that tho goods may have been contracted for at tho beginning of the war at a lower cost than now is incurred in producing them, and in some cases an injustice, it is held, is being done To importers. Air Williams favours the bonus to public, servants, but he sees no reason why officers who receive high salaries should not share in tho bonus. He points out that they certainly take their share of the extra work and responsibility imposed by tho war.