(5) Residue of last-named duties (£37,030 in 1891-92) to the intermediate education board for certain purposes in furtherance of intermediate education. The Irish local charges borne by the imperial funds have long been largely in excess (proportionately) of the corresponding English and Scottish charges borne in like manner. This arises partly from the different character and management of the police forces in Ireland, and partly from the poverty of the Irish people. It must also be borne in mind that Ireland receives no revenue for local purposes from liquor and establishment licenses (see Part I, Chapter V), and continues to receive grants from imperial funds for some of the purposes which in Great Britain are now charged to the license duties. No complete official statement of the Parliamentary votes and consolidated fund charges in aid of Irish local taxation is issued, but some statistics bearing on the subject will be found in Table XVIII of the Appendix. The relief of local taxation thus afforded is in addition to that provided by the Irish share of the allocated taxes, amounting to £359,260 for 1891-92, already referred to.1 Table XVIII may be compared with Table IX for England and Wales, and Table XVI for Scotland. A relic of medieval taxation still survives at Galway, in the shape of duties on salable articles passing through the gates of the town. The present tariff is regulated by an act of 1853, and consists of "ingate tolls," extending to about one hundred items, and "outgate tolls," extending to about forty items.2 Similar tolls are believed to exist in other Irish towns, but no details are obtainable. In the Burdens on Land Report, 1846, reference is made (page 12) to a vestry cess for coffins for the poor, a foundling tax and a tax called "minister's money." These no longer appear in the accounts of Irish local taxation, and are no doubt obsolete. NEWCASTLE-ON-TYNE, ENGLAND. 1 See ante, p. 270. G. H. BLUNDEN. 2 Hancock, Cobden Club Essays, 1875, p. 215. TABLE XII. LOANS ON SECURITY OF RATES, DUES OR PROPERTY, 1889-90. APPENDIX. PARTS II AND III. — SCOTLAND AND IRELAND. TABLE XIII. SHOWING THE AMOUNTS RECEIVED AND EXPENDED BY THE VARIOUS LOCAL AUTHORITIES IN SCOTLAND, £3,565,129 £1,275,488 £797,863 £454,775 £6,093,255 £1,357,514 £6,139,930 £1,092,890 *See ante, p. 280, note 3. + For apportionment of rates between owners and occupiers, see Table XV. + Including school rate of £562,969. TABLE XIV. SUMMARY OF THE TOTAL PAYMENTS INTO AND OUT OF THE LOCAL TAXATION (SCOTLAND) ACCOUNT, FOR THE FINANCIAL YEAR ENDING 31ST MARCH, 1891. (From Parliamentary Paper C. 6583, as amended by C. 6757, Year 1892.) SCOTTISH CHARGES BORNE BY THE CONSOLIDATED FUND AND PARLIAMENTARY VOTES, IN ADDITION TO THOSE SHOWN IN TABLE XIV. (Extracted from Financial Relations Returns, Nos. 93 and 334 of 1893.) *This item is probably only to a very limited extent a relief of local taxation, if at all. + Grants of £35,000 for main roads, and £20,000 for medical relief, were made in 1888-89. These are now also defrayed out of the allocated taxes. See Table XIV. MEMORANDUM. In a communication received from the Treasury, the total amount of Scottish local charges borne by imperial funds in 1891-92 is set down at £315,022, exclusive of education. No details are given. |