§ Mr. HENDERSON STEWARTasked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury whether he is aware that under the present scale of Income Tax relief an unmarried person, male or female, with an income of £400 a year and three persons in the household is required to pay £24 18s. 9d. in Income Tax, whereas a widower or widow in similar circumstances pays only £8 14s. 2d.; and, in 2291W view of the injustice that no allowance is made to an unmarried person in respect of a housekeeper, though such an allowance is made to widows or widowers, whether he will take steps to remove this inequality?
§ Lieut.-Colonel COLVILLEThe question of the extension of the housekeeper allowance to unmarried persons has been repeatedly raised in Finance Bill debates and was fully discussed in Committee on this year's Finance Bill. For the reasons then given, I cannot agree that a case has been made out for the proposed extension. I would add that in the cases quoted the difference in tax attributable to the housekeeper allowance does not appear to be correctly stated in my hon. Friend's question; it cannot exceed £11 17s. 6d., namely tax at 4s. 9d. in the pound on £50.
The approximate amount of Entertainments Duty received during the Financial Year ended 31st March, 1936, under the following heads. Theatres and Music Halls. Cinemas. Football. Cricket. Horse Racing. Other Racing. Other Entertainments. Unclassified Receipts. Total. Ordinary Rates. *Reduced Rates. Ordinary Rates. *Reduced Rates. £000 £000 £000 £000 £000 £000 £000 £000 £000 £000 £000 276 762 5,338 417 28 220 215 207 93 246 7,802 * Finance Act, 1935, Section 1 (3).