§ Mr. Speaker, I have now completed my measures. The increase in revenue is considerable—about £340 million in a full year and £270 million in 1969–70. This should make the Central Government a net re-payer of debt in this fiscal year to the extent of £807 million.
§ But that result is incidental, although beneficial. The main purpose of the Budget is to continue the balance of payments improvement, but to do so in a way compatible with the maintenance of economic growth and the requirements of social justice. The Budget continues the squeeze on consumption and the shift of resources into exports. It lays its burdens fairly. It gives some worth-while concessions to the less well-off. Compatibly with not impairing incentives by increases in personal taxation, it makes 1042 the minimum impact on the cost of living—about one half of 1 per cent. It encourages saving and discourages spending, and by so doing it offers the prospect of lower taxation in the future. But whether by Budgets or other means, Governments cannot and should not attempt to do everything. They cannot solve the balance of payments problem on their own. Only the nation as a whole can do that. The Government must provide the essential framework. That I have endeavoured to do.