BRITISH BUDGET

Timaru Herald, Volume CXLIII, Issue 20671, 9 March 1937, Page 7

BRITISH BUDGET

OUTLINE OF INCREASED EXPENDITURE British Official Wireless RUGBY, October 6. It is now possible to forecast fairly closely from the civil, defence and other estimates already published the total expenditure for which the Chancellor of the Exchequer will have to budget. The civil estimates, at £408,053,605, are up by £28,751,132, compared with last year. The defence estimates total £277,885.OQO, but only £197,685.000 is to come from revenue, which is an increase of £9,815,000 on last year's total. With the requirements of the revenue departments the total for the coming year reaches £619,635,205, or £38,974.432 more than for the year now expiring, but the apparent increase is somewhat misleading, owing to the coming Into operation of the provision of the last Finance Act by which the revenue and expenditure of the former Road Fund are taken into the ordinary accounts. When allow: nee is made for this change, the increase is reduced to the neighbourhood of £16,500,000. Provided, therefore, the charge for the service of the debt, amounting last year to £235,300,000. remains approximately the same, as appears likely, financial writers in 'newspapers take the view that the Chancellor will not have to ask the taxpayer for more than an additional £20.000.000, leaving £80,000,000 for defence, not charged to revenue, to be defrayed under the procedure of the Defence Loans Bill, out of the realised surplus and borrowed money.