Sir John Anderson, the Chairman of the Board of Inland
Revenue, told the War Wealth Committee this week that under the Board's scheme 340,000 persons, whosa total wealth had increased by £2,800,000,000, would bo liable to pay the levy, which might yield £1,000,000,000. The operation would require a large new staff,and would cost perhaps £2,000,000. In each case several valuations would have to be made for differ- ent kinds of wealth. Sir John Anderson said that the Board could not discriminate between wealth obtained by questionable means, wealth secured as a result of the war, and wealth duo to exceptional efforts or self-denial. This, of course, is a blot on the scheme, for it is not right that the patriot who worked his hardest in order to earn more money to invest in war loans for his country's good should be taxed as heavily as an un- scrupulous war contractor. But it is encouraging to find that the Board of Inland Revenue considers a special levy on war wealth to be by no means impracticable.
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