230
9 -
rpose is to finance a not inconsiderable free gift from
public funds to His Majesty's Government, and in such a case
it would be improper to force upon the would-be donors by the
method
use of that majority a taxation/to which the unofficial members
of this Council had objected strongly and unanimously".
Far be it from me to seek to resuscitate a controversy
that is dead and buried, but Government has a right to invoke
the cooperation of all in finding the best moans of meeting war
expenditure which, I am sure, everyone will agree is unavoidable.
Circumstances have altered considerably since Government
accepted with expressed reluctance the recommendations of the
War Revenue Committee and though Government does not propose tɔ
repudiate that acceptance it fecls, in view of the change in the
financial position and the situation disclosed by the actual receipts
from the four war taxes, that the principles on which the taxation
is based should be reconsidered. I am accordingly authorised by
Your Excellency to state that you propose to reconstitute the War
Revenue Committee and to refer the matter to it for re-examination
and advice. I venture in passing to invite the attention of
Honourable Members to the fact that expenditure on the War Taxation
Department itself both this year and next has been and will be kept
considerably lower than the original estimate.
It only remains for me to add that the detailed prepara-
tion of the estimates of expenditure has been in the competent hands
of Mr. Todd, who has also been responsible for the preparation of
the memorandum which accompanic it,
Sir, I beg to move.