On Wednesday Mr. Boner Law introduced a new Vote of
Credit for £550,000,000, to cover expenditure to the end of March. The total sum voted for the finaneialyear would be £2,450,000,000. The gross daily expenditure for the year up to December 1st had been on an average £8,688,000, but about a seventh of this would be more or loss recoverable. The Budget estimate had actually been ex- ceeded by £1,275,000 a day. Mr. Boner Law expressed the confident belief that sooner or later Russia would pay her debts, as no great State had ever proved a defaulter. He said that if the war were not ended by April fresh taxes would have to be imposed, so that when peace came we should be able to pay our way, and perhaps to reduce taxation. Mr. McKenna rebuked Mr. Boner Law for not having proposed freak taxes already. He pointed out, as we have done very often, that the true balance between new Debt and new taxation had not been maintained during the past year.
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