§ MR. LAURENCE HARDY (Kent, Ashford)I beg to ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether in assessing the Land Tax the Local Commissioners have any power to adopt as the basis of their valuation an old Income Tax assessment of 1893 instead of the assessment for 1896–7; and whether the Local Commissioners have any power to make a second demand upon payers of Land Tax who have already paid their quota of the tax in accordance with the demand made upon them, and who hold receipts for the payment of Land Tax for the current year?
§ THE CHANCELLOR OF THE EX-CHEQUER (Sir MICHAEL HICKS BEACH,) Bristol, W.New assessments under Schedule A of the Income Tax Acts are made quinquennially, and, consequently, the assessment made in 1893, as modified in particular cases by subsequent appeals, is still in force, and would be properly used for the purposes of Section 31 (1) of the Finance Act, 1896 The Commissioners of Land Tax for any parish, have to raise the full quota charged against the parish, or so much of it as does not exceed the amount which would be raised by a rate of 1s. in the pound on the "annual value" of the unexonerated properties. If their assessment fails to produce the required sum in full, they have power to raise the deficiency by a reassessment of those properties.
§ MR. LAURENCE HARDYI beg to ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will be able to lay upon the Table of the House, before the discussion takes place on the Budget, a copy of the circular lo the Land Tax authorities which 943 he has instructed the Commissioners of Inland Revenue to issue?
THE CHANCELLER OF THE EXCHEQUERNo, Sir; I do not think this can be done. What I undertook was, that this circular should be issued before the next Land Tax assessments are made.