§ MR. CAREW () Meath, S.To ask Mr. Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, having regard to the fact that difficulty is experienced by owners of property in Ireland in checking the assessments of income-tax on houses and lands in consequence of the numbers of the assessments not corresponding with the numbers in either the valuation books or rate books, the Inland Revenue authorities will cause the numbers of assessments to be revised so as to correspond with either the numbers in the valuation books or rate books, which are locally available for inspection, and consequently a basis and means for the purpose of identification.
(Answered by Mr. Ritchie.) I understand that the Board of Inland Revenue will be glad to do what they can to obviate the difficulty referred to in the first part of the Question, but they fear that the remedy suggested in the second part would not be practicable if only for the reason that the numbering of the Poor Law Valuation List varies from year to year, whereas the Income-Tax (Schedule A) assessment remains unaltered for five years. In any case it is too late now to make any change as regards the current year (1902-3). The Board propose, however, that next year 1616 (1903-4), which happens to be a year of new assessment under Schedule A, the number of the Poor Law Assessment in 1902 shall be entered on the Income-Tax Demand Notes, as well as the number of the Income-Tax Assessment itself, the same plan being followed in the first year of every subsequent quinquennial period. It would not be possible (except at a cost out of proportion to the advantage to be gained) to show the new Poor Law numbers in the intervening years. But it is thought that, if they retain the demand note for the first year of the period, landlords will be able, by reference to it, to identify the property without difficulty in any of the four succeeding years.