THE LAND REVENUE OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

Southland Times, Volume 3, Issue 102, 17 October 1863, Page 6

THE LAND REVENUE OF NEW SOUTH WALES.

■ 't'lie-Sydney 'Moriiing JXerdld.)- ' r, f '':[ Ihlyisp;re!ii«ihary..apo,lpgy forjthegloomy;. View lie! J^as ! abflifltj present pf j puri finaiiceS,. •Prp r Smajrt; said' thati his ppede-, lia<Kbe£rvtq() sangtiine, rand'had cat-; . culated ptf getting.income, that was 'never; realise.d..; Bata glance backwardsjqveMhe* financial documents' of the past few- years iiwvll show tlvat the over-estimate tiats come'\ mainly froiti the Lands' ©epartmeiit,' and ' that the'Wi}l-6'-the wisp /that has led the , Cabinet as 'fay, 'arid at last'landed them in a financial bog. is no other than tliatbril Ilianl, genius John Robertson himself ' ,We: are not sure, after all, ;that Mr; Weekes"vs. riot more sinned against than sinning,, and that.he is. nut entitled to shift j the blame on to the shoulders of his more t pretentious colleague. Each department furnishes its * own estimates, and Mr Weekes merely accepted and combined them. How grossly'Mr Robettson. has misled him the following figures will shot?. We shall compare Mr Robertson's estimates of land revenue wit/i his receipts for four successive year?. These figures are not disputable. They are aU taken from published parliamentary documents, and they I tell their own tale plainly enough. Here are Mr Robertson's estimates and his receipts : — For IS6O — Emmate £552,850 Ecceipts ,'... 312,809 Deficiency..... £239,951 For IS6I :— Estimate... £155,800 Receipts :. 354,33 l ! Deficiency £71,469 For 1832:— Estimate £475,580 Receipts 416,770 Deficiency £58,810 For 1803 :— Estimate £496,800 R ceipts 371,905 Deficiency £124,895 The receipts 1303 are conjectural so far as the latter half of the year is concerned, but they are l>ased on the supposition that the land sales will yi^ld as mufili during: the last six months as they did during the first six months; and that the pastoral rents and assessments for next year, payable on or before 31st December, will turn in L1G7,115. Now let us add these deficiencies together, and tot them up : — ■" Deficiency for 1860 ... £239,95 l Do 18fU ... ... 71,469 j Dj 18(i2 ... ... 55.510 i Do I8b"3 ... ... 124.895 Total ... .£4'J0,150 So that in the short space of four years Mr Robertson has misled his colleagues and Parliament to the extent of half a million sterling. Is it any wonder that there is a deficit, considering that on ihe faith of his assurances that the money would be forthcoming, Ihe anticipated revenue was all voted away. The Minister for Lands has not only never been right in his calcu- j lations, but he has never been even ne irly right, while in the aggregate he has been grossly and egregiously wrons?. I The land revenue is mainly compounded of the proceeds of land sales and the rental of Crown lands. There are a few oilier 1 miscellaneous items, but they are of minor importance. The rental is subdivided into rents proper and assessments; but they may be grouped together, because they are payable by the same class of people and for the same consideration. The assessment was merely an artifice for increasing the rent. Mr Robertson's most grievous error was in over-estimating the proceeds of land sales. But he was also as uniformly, though not so extravagantly, excessive in over-estimating the proceeds of the rentals. We subjoin a statement of In's estimates of each source of revenue for the four years (assessment being included under the term rentals) : — '

Here are eight different estimates, yet not once, not even by accident, was the Minister for Lands right. Such a persistent perversity in going wrong is nol often to be met with. This over estimating is carried out not only in the original but even in the re- ! vised Estimates. A large part of the year \ has generally elapsed before the financial statement is made to Parliament. There J are six or nine months of realised revenue to go by as a criterion for the rest of the year. Yet even in these revised Estimates Mr Robertson's incurable propensity to go wrong n »ver forsukes hrn. Thus in October, 1861, a revised estimate wasplacecl before the Assembly. The land sales for the year had been originally put down a' L 270,000. Nine months of the year had gone, and onJy L 137,000 had bsen realised. Yet, though only three mouths of the year then remained, a statement is put before the Assembly showing that before the close of the year the receipts would nor. only come up to the original expectation but would even go beyond it by L 2.5.000. The Assembly swallowed it without a murmur. Of course, this amotfnt was never realised—this revised estimate being nearly L.70,000 from the truth. But it ! served its purpose of bolstering up the i credit of the Government for the moment, and the promised money was voted away. In other years the discrepancy is not quite so gross as this* Still on every occasion the same sort of error re-appears, and the revised estimates of land revenue are invariably in excess. TheS3 facts are sufficient to show the degree of confidence that is to be reposed in Mr Robertson's estimates ; and therefore, if he comes forward again, as he has come forward in time past, to declare that there need be no fear of a deficit, as he knows how to fetch up all arrears, by means of an increased land revenue, we must take his assurance cum q-rano, We shall know what his promise is vvo-tb.

1860. 1861. 1863. 1303. Sales. £ £ £ £ Estimate. 300,000 2/0.000 250,000 300.000 Receipts . 155..317 | 222,594 216,989 78.0,202. Deficiency U4,tiSo 47,406 33,011 110,708 RENTALS. Estimate. 2-1.0.0)0 ISO.OOT 218,500 190,000 licceipts . 154,095 1 159,0 iO 194,523 175,900 Deficiency I 55,005 ] 20,960 2J.977 j 1 i,097