THE PRIMAGE DUTY.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVII, Issue 20623, 23 July 1930, Page 15

THE PRIMAGE DUTY.

ABOLITION PROPOSED.

SUBSTITUTION OF SURTAX. TWO DIFFERENT RATES. [BT TELEGRAPH. —SPECIAL R EPORTER. ] WELLINGTON Tuesday, "it is proposed to abolish primage duty and to substituto a surtax on tiic duty payable on goods." said (lie Prime, Minister, the. Hon. fi. W. Forbes, in (lie course of his statement. " The rate of surtaT has been fixed at nine.fortieths of the total dtifv otherwise payable on most classes of goods. 11l the case of spirits, tobacco, cigarettes, petrol and timber, the rate is fixed at on"-twentieth of the duty.

" If is obvious that if the higher rate t'f surtax had been added to the duties

on spirits, tobacco, cigarettes and petrol, the ft>tal rato of duty payable would have been rather hieh. The surtax on timber has also been fixed at one-twentieth of the duty payable. It, is not proposed that surtax shnll bo charged on wheat or wheat Hour.

" Primage, duty was imposed in 1915, but if. has not proved as satisfactory in its operation as the Government desires," said the Prime Minister. "Objections to a, primage duty are as follows: —(a) It. increases the cost of administration and slows up the clearance of goods at the Customs; (b) in retailing the goods to ihe consumer, the amount is eilhrr too small to be passed on to the public or has to be passed on with a considerable advance; (c) it, is levied on goods otherwise free, such as manures, cotton and silk piece goods, dyes, tanning materials, paper, agricultural and dairying niachinerv, electric and other industrial machinery. These and many others are used j n the industries of the country and it is, T think, desirable that they should, if of Pritish origin, be admitted without anv dutv.

" As stated previously, the surtax on the majority of goods is nine-fortieths of Ihe total duty payable. 'To afford an opportunity of comparing tho effect of the old primage duty and (lie surtax now proposed, it may be stated that if we take only the goods liable to surtax at the higher iate, (he amount of primage duty (hat would lie collected on goods of British origin imported into New Zealand is just about the, same as tho surtax. The, fact that llio .industries of the country will now for tho most, part, obtain their appliances and materials free, of any duty whatever must be of considerable assistance to them."

TKADI-: WITH AUSTRALIA.

FORMER AGREEMENT STANDS,

N RW DUTIES NOT APPLICABLE

jnv au i. r.r; na i' ii. s r f.o ja l nKronTEn.] WELLINGTON. Tuesday.

.. , n ilr cordauce with the tariff agreeM.enf l.oiu-crn Australia and New Zealand, none of the increased duties will apply to Commonwealth products except by ag tov.itl, the. Australian Government or after six months' notice," said the 1 ritno Minister. " It will be observed also that it is necessary to retain primage duty on Australian goods, but that wheat and wheat, flour have been exempted. "The Minister of Industries and Commerce, the lion. I'. A. de la leircilc, recently had preliminary conversations with Mr. Fcnton, Australian Minister for Trade and Customs, and I believe that as a, result of the discussion, more satisfactory trade arrangements will shortly exist between the two Dominions. The Government will do all it can to achieve this result.

" When it' is remembered that the two countries havo so much in common, nationally, economically and commercially, it seems undesirable, that our tariff relations should be so unsatisfactory. None of the increased duties or restrictions recently imposed by tho Australian Government have so far been applied to frcw Zealand products,."