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nominal surplus of some $2,000,000, but since it is not pro-
posed to make any specific amendments to allow for declines in
other items of revenue and increases in costs of supplies etc.
that nominal surplus will be rather a reserve than a true
expectation of excess of revenue.
I promised a few minutes ago to give some further
details of the Income Tax proposals, but the figures I shall
quote must be taken as provisional only. Although Government
is convinced of the necessity of such a measure in principle
there is no intention to thrust upon the Council a scheme cut
and dried in all its details and all the personal and other
allowances will be open to full discussion in this Council or
in any special committee which may be set up to consider the
details. Honourable members and the public will, however, wish
to have some idea of what is in Government's mind on those points.
The standard rate of 10% will be charged on all company
profits, payments of interest, etc. and on all income in respect
of which the recipient has made no claim to personal and femily
allowances; but the man who makes such a claim will pay at 10%
only on the balance of his income after deducting his allowances
and after paying at half rate, 5%, on the first part of his
taxable income. The allowances Government has provisionally in
mind are earned income allowance, one-tenth of earned income up
to $15,000; personal allowance, 1,300 for a single man plus
1,350 for a wife, children, 1,000 for the first child and
»600 for each subsequent child. The 5% rate would be charged
on the first $3,000 after deducting allowances.
Under this scheme, the exemption limit would be
$1,800 per annum for unearned income and $2,000 for earned
income and a married man with two children would be exempt up
to 5,280 per annum and would only pay the full rate of 10% on
income in excess of 8,600 per annum. The following are random