BETTER POSITION

Southland Times, Issue 22489, 25 January 1935, Page 7

BETTER POSITION

UNEMPLOYMENT FUND FINANCES REVIEWED BY MINISTER A LARGER BALANCE (Per United Press Association.) Wellington, January 24. The Hon. S. G. Smith, acting-Minister of Employment, in a review of the Unemployment Board’s finances, says that the cash balance in the fund at December 31 was £1,478,000. Against this balance must be set off revenue received in advance, estimated at approximately £150,000, and expenditure incurred, but not yet brought to charge, estimated at £753,000. This balance must be increased by approximately £109,000, being revenue actually received by and not paid over to the Treasury by the collecting departments. The estimated actual surplus in the fund is therefore £684,000. In addition to outstanding accounts o' £753,000, there are imprests outstanding, representing vouchers paid but not yet charged to various accounts of £488,000. The Minister explained that the estimated surplus of £684,000 represented an increase of approximately £249,000 over the balance at the commencement of the financial year. This increase might be attributed to the buoyancy of the revenue and to the fact that the numbers who had become a charge on the fund had shown an appreciable reduction over the corresponding period of the previous year. It was pleasing to report that the revenue from unemployment taxation was well up to expectations, being £341,000 in excess of the actual receipts of the previous year. A revised estimate on the basis of the reduced taxation for half the year placed the revenue at £4,346,000. The actual receipts for the nine months ended December 31 amounted to £3,635,408. Even allowing for the revenue received in advance it appeared that the estimate of £3,346,000 would be slightly exceeded.

The Minister stated that the taxation for the balance of the financial year would be at a reduced rate, also that as a result of the review of Scheme No 5 there would be additional expenditure estimated at £175,000. In another statement Mr Smith says that the board has decided that where time to be worked in accordance, with the new scales does not fit evenly into the half days it will be sufficient if the work is performed to the nearest half-day below that represented by the ration of relief authorized.