Thames Star. FRIDAY, JULY 17, 1931. THE COMING BUDGET.

Thames Star, Volume LXV, Issue 18243, 17 July 1931, Page 2

Thames Star.

FRIDAY, JULY 17, 1931. THE COMING BUDGET.

"With malice towards none; with charity for all; with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the right."—Lincoln. ,}J\

The passage of the Unemployment Bill through the House of Representatives has given members a breathing space. The general feeling appears to be that the Bill provides the best means in sight of dealing with unemployment. No one believes that it -ils a solution of the problem, but no alternative was proposed and cri.tics of ,the Bill had little of value to say, though some vote-catching speeches were made. The Budget is the next business of importance, and a Wellington correspondent reports that Mr Forbes is taking a somewhat more optimistic view, with the probable result that increases in taxation will be somewhat less than many people feared. The moratorium for war debts has provided a welcome windfall of which will go some way towards providing the Government subsidy for unemployment. Mr Forbes is said to be seeking further cuts in departmental expenditure. These are essential if less money, is to be spent; the public must be content with fewer and cheaper services from the State. With taxation already at a h' ; £h leyel, cuts in salaries and wages, and the new unemployment levy, people are very hard hit and further additions to taxation would be too heavy a burden. Most people will feel that the Prime Minister should be content to add as little as possible to the public burdens. The country should be allowed to settle down under the new conditions, and some trust be put in an improvement in conditions before the end of the financial year. If the deficit then is very large we shall have to take in our belts another hole, but it is worth trying to pull through without demandmg further sacrifices. The men in the trenches during the war were given rest periods behind the lines, and the people of the Dominion need something similar at present.