§ Mr. Bensonasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether his attention has been drawn to the fact that the Schedule A assessments in force at 3rd September, 1939, on which the instalments of the war damage contribution are being charged, were often excessive, because the owner of the property was not liable to Income Tax and had, therefore, no interest in applying for a reduction of the assessment to the proper amount; and whether steps will now be taken to correct the assessment in such cases?
§ Sir K. WoodYes, Sir. As my hon. Friend is aware, I have explained on a number of occasions that it is in general essential in the circumstances of the present time to base the contribution on the Schedule A assessments as they stood at the beginning of the risk period. As a result, however, of the issue of the demands for the first instalment of contribution, it has been found that in the particular class of cases to which the Question refers the conditions are such as to justify exceptional treatment. I have, therefore, come to the conclusion that in those cases no objection should be taken to an application for revision of the Schedule A assessment, if the application is made within a reasonable time.
§ Rear-Admiral Beamishasked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury whether he can give, for the years 1939–40 and 1940–41, respectively, the total number of individuals whose incomes come above the exemption limit for Income Tax purposes and the number of those that are chargeable with tax?
§ Captain CrookshankIt is estimated that the total number of individuals with incomes above the exemption limit of £125 for 1939–40 was 10,300,000, of whom 4,100,000 were chargeable with tax. For 1940–41 when the exemption limit was lowered to £120, the total number is estimated at 12,000,000, of whom 6,000,000 were chargeable to tax.