WAR FINANCE.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 11757, 22 July 1916, Page 4

WAR FINANCE.

!' ' TO THE EDITOR. j ! Sir.—"VVo hera' a lot in tlie-so times about various methods of raising taxation. Our Finance Minister, Sir ! Josoph 'Ward, has introduced .schemes : that are so elaborate and contusing I that it i>; impossible for ordinary psoplo to grasp his schemes, or to see who is being "hit" by the extra taxation, j Of course, it would never do to i " hit " the wealthy too hard —and whilo ' the working classes continue to give the reins of government to the representatives of the wealthy classes, so surely will such workers bo made to continue to pay nearly all the taxes. ><j But that aside, I have a very simple { method of taxation to propose, outside of taxation of land. Why should we i separate income tax and war profits tax? Why should we not havo the | ; following:—lncomes not exceeding £2OO per annum, free; £2OO to £3OO, at Is in tho £; £3OO to £-100 ; at 2s 6d in tho £; £4OO to £SOO, at 5s in the £; £SOO to £IOOO, at 10s in the £; I over £IOOO per annum, at 15s in the £. | On other words, an income of £3OO j would pay £5 taxation, and can even in peace times afford to do so; £4OO ■would pay £l7 10s: £SOO would pay £42 10s; £IOOO would pay £292 10s; while £2o(XMvoukl pay £1042 10s, and so on.

Considering that the average worker's wage is not more than £l3O per annum, my proposal is not unreasonable when it is viewed in the light that a man or woman with £3OO a year would have £295 left to livo on; one with £4OO would have £382 10s; ana so on until wo reach one with £2OOO a year, who would have left to him to try and exist on £957 10s; over seven times the worker's average wage. 'For each £IOOO over £2OOO ho would have £250 extra left to him.—l am, etc., GEORGE S. THOMSON. Linwood, July 22.