PARLIAMENT.

Colonist, Volume LVII, Issue 14139, 15 July 1916, Page 4

PARLIAMENT.

BUOYANT FINANCE

Bm WAR FUND RESERVE

' LOCAL WAR LOAN/

(From Oub Own Correspondent;)

T v rt , r . ■ Wellington, July 14. The Minister of .Finance gave A; eheeriul resume of the financJat position m moving the, third reading of the Finance Bill m the House of Re P re! sontatives to-day. He stated • "At present there is £2 ; GOO,000 of our moneY invested m liquid securities in London in .imperial Treasury 'hills entirely for purposes connected with the war. I hope that amount 5 will bo increased from time to time, and I am looking forward, as an outcome of the taxation' we are putting on for war purposes, to having available at the end of the year m round figures £650,000. If we havo that amount when thewar is over practically, all of it will' be used for the purpose of reducing war loans. (Hear, hear.) We .shall then bo in a strong position to reduce war ■ loans." Sir Joseph Ward said that the clause relating to the issue of 5 per cent, debentures for payment for land would be' operative until 12 months after the end of the war. No remission of in-come-tax on debentures was contained in the Bill. . While payment for the war must come first, the" country could not allow the social life of the country, snd especially that connected with the settlement of soldiers, to he jeopardised through not having means 'to acquire land.

Dr. Newman: Will there be a local war loan?

Sir Joseph Ward: Yes. It will be necessary to raise a Portion of the money for war purposes in New Zealand. The loan "would be for a considerable sum, but not more than the country could provide. New Zealand must still rely on, a portion of the money being obtained from the Old Country.

Sir Joseph Ward detailed the financial position for the three months ended June 30th. The year's' permanent charges amounted to £1,383,128, or an increase of £34,032 on the figures for the corresponding period of last year, while under annual appropriations the expenditure was £1,:>84,797, or a decrea.se of £26,543, the total heing £2,967,925, as against £2,960,434, or an increase of £7491 for the quarterly period. Taking into consideration the balance as at April Ist, with the June cuarterly receipts, ir-ade a total of £5,----257,287, which, after allowing for an expenditure of £2,9:7.925, left a. net credit of £2,289,362, which had been transferred to war expenditure. Speakers congratulated Sir Joseph Ward on meeting most of the objections which had been raised against his original proposals.

Sir Joseph Ward, in replying, said the National Government was in a position which prevented members of the Ministry from dealing with party questions on which struggles might com© in future.

The Bill was read the third lime and passed •without lat division.

The House lose at 11 p.m. till Tuesday.