THE BRITISH BUDGET

Waihi Daily Telegraph, Volume XXXVI, Issue 9062, 22 April 1937, Page 3

THE BRITISH BUDGET

! CHEERED BY LABOUR MEMBERS J "BRILLIANT SOCIALISM" INCOME TAX INCREASED Australian and N.2. Cable. LONDON, April 20. The Budget was presented in the House of Commons to-day by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Mr Neville Chamberlain. Mr Chamberlain said the actual Budget deficit was £5,597,000. But for excess defence expenditure of £8,000,000 he would have ended the year with a formal surplus of nearly £2,250,000 after providing over £13,000,000 for redemption of debt. Income tax fell short of expectations by £1,750,000, which was significant in view of the argument that he could have had the money nee led without fresh, taxation if he had been m ire optimistic. The total realisable revenue wa3 £797,259,000, an increase of £44,?69,000. Customs and excise exceeded the estimate, and stamp duties yielded a record figure, but surtax was disappointing, showing a drop of £3,000,000. The Post Office was expanding remarkably. He considered these results were extremely satisfactory and an indication of expanding trade and an increase in the national purchasing power. NOTABLE INCREASES Among the notable increases were spirits, beer, tobacco and oil. The low cost of Treasury issues saved £20,000,000. He proposed to keep the old figure of £224,000,000 as fixed debt charge and intended, as a precaution, to take power to borrow for a statutory sinking fund. The total expenditure for the coming year, excluding self-balancing items, was £5G2,848,000. It is expected that the Coronation will increase Customs and excise by over £12,000,000 compared with last year. The estimated revenue for the coming year was £847,950,000, leaving a prospective deficit of £14,895.000. Income tax would be increased 3d. License duty on male servants would be abolished. GENERAL VERDICT The general verdict was that, excluding meat duties, Mr Chamberlain's Budget was "brilliant Socialism," which Labour members vociferously confirmed by repeated cheers. Several of them afterwards said their own party could not have introduced a better Budget.