31 MAY 1924, Page 3

On the Second Reading of the Finance Bill in the

House of Commons on Tuesday Mr. Asquith made the unexpected suggestion that holders of War Loan should be invited to hand it back to the Government in return For a certificate which would give them exemption, or partial exemption, from Income Tax for a definite period. In this way, he argued, holders of a sufficient amount of the Loan would ,j3e enabled to make a solid contribution to the reduction of debt. They could do so at a time most convenient to themselves. What he proposed was a kind of voluntary Capital Levy which would have none of the disadvantages of a compulsory levy.