A SPECTATOR 'S NOTEBOOK
ONE more intolerable imposition on the part of the Government Department has just been brought to light. The once-for-all levy—or so-called "special contribution "—on unearned income, over and above income tax and Surtax, imposed by the last Budget was inequitable enough in all conscience. It is made substantially more so by the fact that, though the vast majority of persons liable to the levy have received no demand for it, nor any statement of the amount they are liable for, they will have to pay interest at the rate of 2 per cent. per annum for so long as the levy remains unpaid after January 1st. Questioned on the subject in the House of Commons this week, the Chancellor admitted that no more than 26,000 notices of assessment out of 125,000 have so far been sent out, and blandly pointed to section 54 of this year's Finance Act, which imposes the 2 per cent, interest penalty in respect of any payment, "whether assessed or not," on arrears after January 1st. Anything more despicably mean can hardly be imagined. The proviso in the Finance Act seems to have passed unnoticed at the time. In any case, no one would have suspected that a situation would arise in which, the more the Treasury defaulted in its assessments, the more 2 per cent. interest it would be likely to reap. To all this the Chancellor cynically replies "Make a good guess and pay it in advance." In other words, cure financial extortion by financial sloppiness.
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