§ Sir Joseph Lambasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, in the case of a commercial goods motor-vehicle 202 constructed since the outbreak of war, he will provide that the duty payable for a vehicle licence shall not be increased by the vehicle falling into a heavier weight class for taxation purposes than a vehicle of the same design and type constructed before the war if it can be proved by the manufacturers that the increase of weight has resulted from their having been obliged by the Government control of materials to use heavier materials in the construction of the vehicle than those which they used before the war?
§ The Financial Secretary to the Treasury (Captain Crookshank)The rate of duty payable in respect of a vehicle must be determined by readily ascertainable facts. The question of the extent to which a vehicle is heavier than it would have been but for the unavailability of certain materials is a matter of technical opinion which licensing authorities could not reasonably be called upon to decide.
§ Sir J. LambIs my right hon. and gallant Friend aware that unless it is altered it will not only be another indirect tax on the industry but a detriment to production in the industry?