§ 37. Mr. de Freitasasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will include in the draft of the Finance Bill provision to allow the amount paid in dividends to be deducted from income before assessment to Profits Tax in the case of statutory undertakers who are in receipt of fixed incomes, the amount of which is prescribed by or under an Act of Parliament.
The Chancellor of the Exchequer (Mr. Derick Heathcoat Amory)I am afraid that I cannot accept the hon. Member's suggestion.
§ Mr. de FreitasIf I send the right hon. Gentleman details, will he look again at the peculiar position, the anomalous and possibly unique position, of the Witham Navigation, the shareholders of which, such as Lincoln Corporation, are particularly penalised under the present law?
Mr. AmoryI assure the hon. Gentleman that I will read with interest any information he sends me. He will remember that the Royal Commission considered this matter and recommended that a unified Profits Tax should apply to the kind of undertaking to which the hon. Gentleman has referred.