§ Mr. Summersasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will provide a statement to show the incidence of indirect taxation in each of the items included in the make up of the cost-of-living index, showing Purchase Tax separately, estimating the figures where necessary.
§ Sir S. CrippsThe following items included in the retail price index are subject to specific Customs or Excise duties, and the approximate amounts of duty included in the retail prices are as follows:160W
Items Amount of duty s. d. Sugar 1 per lb. Cocoa 1¼ per lb. Beer of present average strength 8½ per pint Whisky of usual strength 24 7 per bottle Pipe tobacco— Medium-priced brands 3 2 per ounce Cigarettes— Size sold at 3s. 6d. for 20 2 9½ for 20 Size sold at 2s. 7d. for 20 2 0½ for 20 Matches—safety …nearly 1¼ per box of 50 Cinema seat (price 1s 9d.) 8½ Football admission— (price 1s. 3d. or 1s. 6d.) 1 Petrol 9 per gallon In addition, Purchase Tax is payable on the wholesale value of a number of articles which, however, carry very little weight in the index. A list of items affected is as follows:
Rate of Tax (Per cent. of wholesale value) CLOTHING— Cotton, woollen and rayon clothing materials (other than Utility goods and baby knitting wool) 66⅔ Articles of apparel for adults (other than Utility goods) 33⅓ Women's Utility fully-fashioned stockings 33⅓ Children's non-Utility gloves 33⅓ Adults' footwear (other than Utility goods) 33⅓ HOUSEHOLD GOODS AND TOILET ARTICLES: Metal kitchen cabinets (non-Utility) 33⅓ Radio sets 33⅓ Pedal cycles 33⅓ Vacuum cleaners 33⅓ Domestic sewing machines 33⅓ Alarm clocks 33⅓ Table mangles 33⅓ Electric fires 100 Gas fires 66⅔ Linoleum, felt base, carpets and rugs 33⅓ Tea towels and glass cloths (other than Utility goods) 66⅔ Enamel wash-up bowls 33⅓ Electric lamp bulbs 33⅓ Tennis rackets 33⅓ Gramophone records 66⅔ Toilet soap, tooth paste, razor blades 33⅓ Cold cream 100 Proprietary medicines 33⅓ Writing paper 33⅓ Various items in the index may also be affected by other duties, such as those under the Import Duties Act, the Ottawa Agreement Act, the Key Industries duties, the duties on dried fruit, on silk, and on imported beef, and the motor vehicle licence duties; or by other duties chargeable on ingredients used in their manufacture. It is impracticable to give details of the incidence of these duties in respect of individual items.