PUBLIC-HOUSE LICENSES.
[TO THE EDITOR OF THE "SPEGTATORM
Sin,—its a means of increasing the Revenue you advocate an increase in the licenses to sell intoxicants. Does this mean that the State should grant a license practically to any one applying for the same, and so relieve the Magistrates of their present responsibility in deciding whether the license is necessary or not? Or is it intended to mean that the present system should continue to exist, but that the License-duty should be increased? The duty is now charged according to the annual value of the premises in the case of publicans, and varies from 24 10s. to £60. But even if these rates of duty were increased the Imperial Exchequer would not receive the benefit, for the whole of the Revenue obtained from licenses to sell intoxicating liquors is handed over to the various County Councils, and any proposal to alter this would no doubt meet with strong opposition from those bodies. It would be interesting to know the value of the annual present made by the State to a license-holder in the grant of the license. The majority of retail license- holders would probably say they only obtained a mere living. The large spirit merchants may easily bear an
increased License-duty, but then under the present law the County Councils only would gain by such increase. As you write particularly of the value of the property bestowed with a license, you can only refer to publicans and beer retailers, for the other licenses are more easily obtained, and even in some cases without applying to the Magistrates. In the case of the publicans and beer retailers the brewers give the big prices for the houses, and to tax the tenant, the license-holder, on account of that price would hardly be fair. Therefore it would seem a difficult matter to deal with the question you have raised, especially with a view to increasing the Imperial Revenue. In conclu- sion, as about six millions is annually handed to the County Councils out of the Beer, Spirit, and Death duties, purely Imperial Revenue, why could not this sum be transferred to the Imperial Exchequer account and the County Councils asked to make it up from the local rates ?—I am, Sir, &c.,
J. S. [As we imagined was clear from the context, we desire to increase the sums now paid for licenses. The extra sum added above present rates would of course be retained by the Imperial Exchequer,—the sole object of the proposal being the increase of the Imperial Revenue. The real incidence of the tax would fall, as it does now, on the owners of the licensed premises. The present scale of licenses is unreasonable and unjust, for the poor houses pay more in proportion than the rich.—En. Spectator.]
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