The efforts which will be made by the recently elected Labour Govern ment to improve the financial pos tion of the Commonwealth of An: tralia were outlined by Mr. J. A. Lyons, the Acting Federal Treasur-for, in the House of Representatives He said that new taxation would be imposed which, it was estimated, would produce $3,700,000 during the present financial year while cuts in expenditure would result in economjes) totalling 3,180,000. With the restoration of confidence and a re-
I in trade, he added, a reasonable estimate of the deficit in the Commonwealth Budget would be be-teen 8,000,000 and £10,000,000.
The Acting Federal Treasurer that would be impossible to 1 year, but the Budget had been planned so that, when operated on a full financial year, the Commonwealth would have redeem led its undertakes The new tariff schedule tabled in the House of Representatives to-day increases the Primage Duty from 23 per cent. to 4 per cent, It imposes a duty of 4d per Ib. on bulk tea and increases the duty on tea in packets from 1d to 6d per Ib.
The duty on tobacco is increased from seven shillings to nine shill per Ib., The excise duty on tobacco is doubled, making it 4/1d for hand-made goods and 4/4d for tured goods. The duty on coffee is raised from Id. to dd. per There will be no preferential rates on any of the above mentioned items.
Other increases include lace, embroideries, and tucked linens of cot~ tons, 10 per cent. and carpets 5 per cent. both ad valorem, The duties on kerosene and mineral and lubricating oil are increased 1d per gallon, while the duties on crude rubber, rubber waste and lar goods are increased 4d per None of the new duties contains margin for preference in favour of British goods. In fact the effect of the increases is to reduce the margin of the preference given to British goods on all items in the schedule on which preference was given. Tariff rates which, formerly, were 10 per cent. on British goods and 20 per cent. on foreign goods have now been increased to 30 per cent. on British goods and 40 per cent. on foreign goods, and x0 on.
The new tariff schedule comes into operation to-morrow.—Reuter.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.