Mr. J. M. Henderson, the Liberal Member for West Aberdeen,
while supporting the new land taxes, warned his party that the adoption of the single-tax doctrine of Henry George would split the Liberal Party asunder. Mr. Austen Chamberlain observed that the Opposition were not now challenging the policy of land taxes. The time for• such action might come later on. For the moment they were concerned to see whether the methods of valuation could not be amended with a view to greater fairness. Without imputing deliberate unfairness to the Government, he contended that official valuers would have a natural bias in the interests of their employers which would induce them to assess site value too low, and it was necessary that the House should be told whether the valuers appointed were the most highly qualified. The amendment was rejected by 263 votes to 189, or a majority of 74.
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