LANDOWNERS' TAXES.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXI, Issue 18662, 19 March 1924, Page 11

LANDOWNERS' TAXES.

RATES ON LARGE ESTATES. PRIME MINISTER'S VIEW. "AMAZED AT OPPOSITION." IEX TELEGRAPH.PRESS ASSOCIATION.] WELLINGTON. Tuesday. In the course of a statement on taxation, the Prime Minister says an impression seems to have been created during the last few months to the effect that the larger landowners practicably escape taxation. That however, is not the case by a very long way. Mr. Massey said that a settler whose unimproved value is £22,000 pays by way of land tax £187 18s 4d per annum ; on £30,000 the land tax is £306 ss; on £45,000, £600; on £100,000, £1468 15s. In these cases there is no deduction on account of the land being mortgaged. The landowner whose mortgage is over £4000 is taxed on his debts. A large holding very often means a large mortgage, but even if it is mortgaged to the last shilling, land tax has to be calculated on the full unimproved value without consideration of mortgage and irrespective of whether profit or loss has been made on the year's operations.

" There is another point worth mentioning," Mr. Massey added. " During the session of 1920, it became evident that more revenue would be required for cleaning up after the war. For that purpose land tax was increased, especially on unimproved values from £30,000 upwards, and,though there has been an all-round reduction since that date, the more highly valued, properties are still taxed in greater proportion than they were prior to 1920. " I have been anxious to get both land and income tax back to normal as soon as possible and it is in the interest o'f every section of the community that such reductions should be made, but I have been amazed at the opposition which has been shown to this by people who ought to have sufficient knowledge of economics to know better."