FINANCES OF BRITAIN.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 21019, 7 May 1930, Page 9

FINANCES OF BRITAIN.

CHANCELLOR’S FORMIDABLE TASK. ‘ . 781 MILLIONS EXPENDITURE. (From Our Own Correspondent.) LONDON, March 21.. Mr Snowden, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, will have to provide for a total ordinary expenditure of about £781,000,000 iu his coming -Budget, which he will present on April »14, an increase, compared with the last . Budget, of £40,000,000. . ’ This is the situation disclosed by the expenditure proposals of the Civil and Fighting Services, all of which have not presented Parliament their estimates for the new financial year which begins on April 1 next. Compared with the last Budget, the-new estimates show that the amounts to be provided in the new Budget for the Supply Services, under the heading of ordinary expenditure, are as follows : Army .. .. £40,500,000 ’ £45,000* Navy ~ .. 51,739,000 4,126,000* Air Force .. 17,850,000 1,650,000 t Civil votes .. 295,685,558 56,800,224 t Customs, Excise, and In- - land Revenue 12,134,650 560,2251 Total .. £417,909,208 £54,845,449f * Decrease. f Increase. The exact amount qf the Debt and Consolidated Fund charges for the coming year will- not be disclosed until Budget day. In the last Budget the provisions made for this expenditure, including Sinking Fund, amounted.to £378,900,000, which, with the civil and fighting services votes brought the aggregate" ordinary expenditure of Mr Churchill’s Budget to £741,964,000. With only three weeks to complete the cqrront financial year, the position to date shows revenue £726,932,647, and expenditure, including the self-supporting Post Office and Road’ Funds accounts, £785,599,251, giving a deficit 0.£58,666,604. At the corresponding date last year there was a deficit of £18,120,200. MILLIONAIRES DECREASING. The Inland Revenue return is interesting in that it shows the number of millionaires in Great Britain is decreasing. A millionaire, for the purpose of the calculation, is a person receiving an income of not less than £50,000 a year. This is how they have gone on decreasing:— YEAR 1925-26. Total * No. of Incomes Income. Persons. Assessed. £50,000-£75,000 .. 318 £18,970,552 £75,000-£IOO,OOO .. 115 9,822,619 Above £IOO,OOO .. 143 25.950A79 YEAR 1926-27. £50,000-75,000 .. 301 £18,182,282 £75,000-£IOO,OOO .. 99 „ 8,339’187 Above £IOO,OOO ~ 150 20,910,230 YEAR 1927-28. £50,000-£75,000 .. 273 £16,373,406 £75,000-£IOO,OOO .. 93 7,943,436 Above £IOO,OOO ~ 131 26,497,470