§ Lord EDMUND TALBOT (for Mr. Samuel Roberts)asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he is aware that the increased Licence Duty for Whitehall Court will amount to the sum of £790 18s. as against £20 at present, whereas the total receipts for excisable liquors only amount to £2,385, and that the imposition of this increased charge will necessitate the surrender of the licence, causing inconvenience to the occupants of the building as well as loss to the revenue; and what steps he proposes to take to meet this and similar cases?
§ Mr. HOBHOUSEMy right hon. Friend is aware that a licence at the hotel rate 466 of £20 is at present held for Whitehall Court. As regards the duty which will be payable under the Finance Bill, I may point out that under Clause 45 (3), as amended in Committee, the duty payable in respect of hotels, etc., may, at the option of the person by whom the duty is payable, be a duty of 25 per cent. on such amount as the Commissioners of Inland Revenue certify to be the annual compensation value of the premises. Consequently, until such compensation value has been determined, it is not possible to say what will be the amount of duty payable, but it seems hardly probable that it will be as high as is suggested in the question.
Mr. G. D. FABERWill the right hon. Gentleman be good enough to reply to the last part of the question: What steps he proposes to take to meet this and similar cases?
§ Mr. HOBHOUSEI pointed out that until the compensation value is determined it is impossible to say what the duty will be, and therefore it seems unnecessary to take any steps at present.