CONCLUSION (Hansard, 14 April 1964)

HC Deb 14 April 1964 vol 693 cc273-380 273

§ Public expenditure this year, current and capital, will be rising fast. This is necessary to pay for the houses, the schools, the universities and colleges, the hospitals that as a country we want and as a Parliament we have approved. It is necessary, also, to finance the rapidly growing capital expenditure on the basic public services that are essential to the health and vigour of our economy.

§ The money cannot be found from the natural growth of revenue alone, substantial as that will be. To leave tax rates as they are would mean increasing the proportion of public expenditure to be financed by borrowing, and I do not believe that any responsible person would recommend such a course with our economy already so fully employed and prospects for demand so vigorous. I have settled the amount I require in extra revenue, and the means of raising it, with the avowed purpose of avoiding any setback to our economic progress, to the growing level of production, exports and investment.

§ To sum up, the purpose of this Budget is to maintain expansion without inflation.

Description of spirits	Excise duty	Customs duties
Full rate	Common-wealth rate	Convention rate
	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.
1. British spirits (per proof gallon)	12	17	6		—			—			—
2. Imported spirits other than perfumed spirits—
(a) not comprised below in this paragraph (per proof gallon)		—		13	0	0	12	17	6	12	17	6
(b) liqueurs, cordials, mixtures and other preparations in bottle, entered in such manner as to indicate that the strength is net to be tested (per gallon)		—		17	11	0	17	7	6	17	7	6
	each of the above rates of duty being, in the case of spirits not warehoused or warehoused for less than 3 years, increased by 1s. 6d. per proof gallon or, for spirits within paragraph 2(b) of this Table, by 2s. 0d. per gallon.

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§ Expansion now is heartening and vigorous. The possibilities are great and the prospects exciting. To realise them we must avoid the danger of pushing ahead just that marginal amount too fast. The Budget is designed to finance the growth of the public services on an ambitious scale without it inflation. I submit it now to the judgment of this Committee. All I ask is that those who will criticise will make their alternative proposals crystal clear, for on this the country will be entitled to know and to judge.

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