FALLING TAX RECEIPTS.

Taranaki Daily News, 8 July 1931, Page 6

FALLING TAX RECEIPTS.

Some idea of tlie difficulties confronting the Minister of Finance in his endeavotir to prepare a balanced Budget for the current financial year can be gathered from the figures published yesterday in regard to tax receipts last year. Mr. Forbes has made it clear that additional taxation cannot be avoided, and 1 the Unemployment Bill now before the House of Representatives has denioiistrated one proposed additional species of direct taxation. Consideration of last year’s receipts leads to a doubt as to whether any heavy increase in the rates of taxation will have the desired result of bringing in additional revenue. Taking the taxes on land and income, generally those in which increases or decreases are first applied, it will be seen that despite higher rates and the substitution of income tax on profits of farms above £7500 in unimproved value for the special land tax, the . aggregate increase in land and income taxes was but £108,548 for last year. But the collection of taxes was upon incomes and land held up to the period ended March 31, 1930. In that year prices of primary products had by no means slumped as they did in the succeeding twelve months, and it is safe to assume that many who were liable for income tax last year will, unfortunately for themselves, be entitled to exemption this year for lack of taxable income. In Customs receipts the decreased spending power of the community is reflected very clearly. They were less than those of the preceding year by £1,291,071, and here again the full effect of the slump in prices had not been felt through the whole of the financial year. The outlook for Customs revenue is no more cheerincr than that for direct taxation, and to° overcame the difficulties facing him the Minister of Finance will need all the help that Parliament can give him. Despite an additional £322,585 obtained last year from the unemployment levy and the film hire tax, the total tax collections were down by £492,840. With conditions by no means improved, though there are grounds for hope that they soon will be, the Dominion’s Treasusy must expect a lean year, and the policy of economy in administration must be rigorously applied.