Scotsman Archive

IT CANNOT be said that the Budget has had a good reception. So far, however, inadequate consideration is being given to what is perhaps the most significant aspect of our economic position, namely, the prospects for future years. On the Chancellor's own admission receipts from various sources of revenue are going to fall. But the costs of the Welfare State are going to rise, and will rise substantially because of our ageing population. Our whole economy, as Mr Butler indicated in the debate in the Commons, is precariously poised. It is the high level of government expenditure that is the root reason for the inability of the Chancellor to help the taxpayer. A point, however, that the electors ought not to overlook is Sir Stafford Cripps' contention that the heavy rate of taxation is not having a detrimental effect upon production. If that is his sincere belief then the question arises whether he ought to be at the Exchequer.

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