§ 68. Mr. STANTONasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if his attention has been called to the position of thousands of miners in the South Wales districts, who through strikes, unemployment, and at present low wages, are unable to pay the Income Tax demands through the courts; and will he consider some scheme to meet the altered circumstances of the miners, granting exemption to those who through no fault of their own are unemployed or are not now earning a wage equal to the high cost of living?
§ Sir R. HORNEI would refer the hon. Member to the answer (a copy of which I am sending him) given on 8th November last to the hon. Member for Rother Valley in reply to a question on this subject. The hon. Member will, I think, appreciate that I could not acquiesce in a general non-payment of arrears of Income Tax which are due under the law in respect of earnings actually received and enjoyed, but which the recipients neglected to pay at the proper time. As regards the recovery of arrears by way of summary proceedings, I think the hon. Member may safely assume that the courts give full weight to all relevant considerations when making orders for payment.