It is predicted that the Betting Taxes will be revised.
The 31 per cent. tax on credit bets may be reduced to 3 per cent., and the 21 per cent..tax on racecourse bets to 2 per cent. It seems that a good deal of betting has been diverted to the street, where apparently Mr. Churchill is unwilling to deal with it. But there is also, we believe, a diminution of betting as the result of the tax. We always took the view that such a diminution would be as satisfactory as a large revenue from the tax. In either case, the tax justifies itself. Yet another pre- diction is that Mr. Churchill is considering a proposal to make American films subject to Income Tax as well as to the McKenna duty of 33} per cent. which is now imposed. Some persons expect that Mr. Churchill will increase the duty on tea, and others that he will reduce the whisky tax in order to increase the revenue. The very heavy tax on spirits has, of course, greatly reduced consumption, and for that reason we trust that Mr. Churchill will keep the tax where it is.
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