§ Mr. STEPHENasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he is aware that in certain cases where the Unemployment Grants Committee have agreed to give assistance to the extent of paying 50 per cent. of the interest for half the period of the loan, the period of the loan not exceeding 50 years, on loans raised for the purposes of some kinds of works for the relief of unemployment the Income Tax authorities have received instructions to charge the undertakings with Income Tax on the amounts received by them by way of assistance from the Unemployment Grants Committee, so that the undertakings referred to will only benefit to the extent of 80 per cent. of the grant given instead of 100 per cent. which they anticipated and based their arrangements upon, and that certain particular Government grants given for maintenance purposes are now being treated by the Income Tax authorities as taxable revenue; and by whose authority and when were the instructions given to the Island Revenue so to act; and will provision be made in the next Finance Act for negativing the powers of the Inland Revenue in this respect so that authorities in receipt of grants in relief of interest from the Unemployment Grants Committee or grants given by other Government Departments may receive the full benefit of all such grants?
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§ Mr. P. SNOWDENI would refer my hon. Friend to the reply which my hon. Friend the Financial Secretary to the Treasury gave on 12th November last to a similar question. I am sending him a copy of that question and answer.