§ 43. Mr. William Palingasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he is aware that the Empire Theatre, Dewsbury, which is the only live theatre in the district, was obliged to close down last week, and that one of the reasons necessitating this course was the absence of any relief from entertainment tax for the living theatre in the Budget; and whether, in view of the substantial number of theatres which have been obliged to close down recently, he will cause a special review to be made by his officials of this problem.
§ Mr. R. A. ButlerI have seen reports in the sense of the first part of the Question. For the reasons I explained in my Budget statement, I did not feel able to make any general reductions in indirect taxation on this occasion. I have, however, arranged for the duty on admissions to theatres and other entertainments to be kept under review.