Oral Answers to Questions — National Finance. – in the House of Commons at on 19 June 1941.
Mr Thomas Horabin
, Cornwall Northern
asked the Chancellor of the exchequer whether he is aware that, in proposing to repeal the Medicine Stamp Duties, his predecessor was influenced by the action threatened by Messrs. Woolworth for illegal administration of the duties; and whether, as an alternative to repeal, he will consider the introduction of a Bill to legalise any such administration?
Sir Kingsley Wood
, Woolwich West
The legal action to which my hon. Friend refers merely illustrated the difficulties to which the administration of these antiquated Acts continually gave rise. The answer to the second part of the Question is therefore in the negative.
Major Henry Procter
, Accrington
asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury what is the present approximate annual yield of the Purchase Tax upon medicines; and to what extent this yield exceeds the present annual yield of the Medicine Stamp Duties?
Captain Harry Crookshank
, Gainsborough
Before the announcement of the abolition of the Medicine Stamp Duty in the recent Budget it was estimated that the yield of the duty in a full year would be £800,000. Precise figures of the yield of the Purchase Tax on prepared drugs and medicines are not available, but I think it possible that the yield for a full financial year will be of the order of £3,000,000.
The chancellor of the exchequer is the government's chief financial minister and as such is responsible for raising government revenue through taxation or borrowing and for controlling overall government spending.
The chancellor's plans for the economy are delivered to the House of Commons every year in the Budget speech.
The chancellor is the most senior figure at the Treasury, even though the prime minister holds an additional title of 'First Lord of the Treasury'. He normally resides at Number 11 Downing Street.
