§ MR. CAREW (Meath, S.)I beg to ask Mr. Chancellor of the Exchequer if he is able to say what is the loss at the present time, actual or estimated, to the Revenue per penny of income tax levied, in consequence of the several allowances, exemptions, and abatements now made in the levying of income tax; and what would be the estimated gain to the revenue if all incomes under £100 were free, and all incomes over £100 were subject to the full tax of 1s. 2d. in the £; what is the number of persons who now obtain exemption from income tax owing to their incomes being under the £160 limit; and what is the number of persons who obtain abatements of income tax owing to their several incomes being below the several limits up to £700 a year.
§ THE CHANCELLOR OF THE EXCHEQUER (Sir M. HICKS BEACH, Bristol, W.)I am afraid I cannot give the hon. Member much of the information for which he asks. The latest complete information on the subject is that for the year 1898–99, and appears on pages 122 and 123 of the forty-third Report of the Board of Inland Revenue. Any estimate of the number and total amount of incomes between £100 and £160 could only be a guess; and the number of persons who obtained exemption by reason of their incomes being under £160 is not known. The number of abatements under all the schedules allowed in the year 1898–99 was 525,361, which, at the then rate of the tax, 8d. in the £1, amounted to about £2,765,000.