14
Wednesday, February 24, 1971
$3,000 MILLION REVENUE LIKELY
Sir John Reviews Remarkable Revenue Growth In 1970/71
********
Sir John Cowperthwaite, Financial Secretary, said today the total
revised estimate of revenue for 1970-71 was $2,981 million but there
were grounds for believing it would reach $3,000 million for the first time.
He told the Legislative Council this was "particularly remarkable" because revenue had reached $2,000 million for the first time in 1968/69,
just two years ago, "and we have had a not inconsiderable net reduction in
taxation in the meanwhile."
It was a commonplace that every year Hong Kong's financial progress
tended to be remarkable, but 1970-71 had perhaps been "the most remarkable
in post-war years, both for the extraordinary growth of revenue, and for the
fact that we are almost certain to overspend our original expenditure estimates."
The estimate of revenue had been revised from the original figure of
$2,584 million to $2,981 million. Actual revenue in 1969/70 was $2,481 million,
so that revenue had grown by $500 million, or a fraction more than 20 per cent;
and it would be recalled that there had been a reduction in taxation estimated
to cost $14 million in revenue.
year's $399 million was the nearest
been exceeded
"This absolute increase has never before been approached
while in percentage terms it has only
other than in years of substantially increased taxation
last
in
1962/63," Sir John said.
/"1970/71