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towards retirement or old age than employees in
state-controlled concerns or private industry. When
one comes to consider the position of professional
men such as accountants and solicitors whose
activities result in the creation of no substantial
assets but merely in the intangible asset known a
professional goodwill, the discrepancy is still more
apparent.
Contributions by both employer and
employees to approved superannuation schemes are
exempt from tax where pensions are provided for
employed workers but there is no tax remission or
exemption in the case of contributions by self-
employed persons towards schemes to provide for
themselves in old age.
The Council therefore,
approached
the
representative bodies of other
professions, who gave their support and we intend
to submit a case to the appropriate authorities in
favour of tax remission on contributions by self-
employed professional men
towards
retirement
benefit schemes.
It is of interest to see that the
Chancellor of the Exchequer in England has recently
granted concessions on the lines indicated.
I am
sorry to see that the Minister for Finance has been
unable to make a similar concession in this country.
I hope to be able to make a further report on this
matter at the next half-yearly meeting, and we
hope in making such representations to point out
that professional men, such as solicitors and accoun
tants, are in the course of their work in connection
with Income Tax, Estate Duty and Stamp Duties,
in effect, the great unpaid Collectors of Taxes and
so are entitled to special consideration from the
Minister for Finance. And when I refer to the
Minister for Finance—and I speak in the shadow
of his budget speech—I must say that we welcome
the abolition of the 25 per cent, tax on certain
purchases by non-Nationals. This tax has served
its purpose and its removal will be of undoubted
benefit. I am sorry, however, that he has not been
able to reduce the high rates of Stamp Duty on
ordinary transfers of property and to follow the
example of the Chancellor of the Exchequer in
England. The Stamp Duty on a purchase of £3,500
in England is £17 los. The Stamp Duty on a similar
purchase in this country is £105. The Chancellor
in giving his reasons for the reduction said and I
quote " There is no better stimulue to saving than
house ownership and I believe that many more
people will commit themselves to it if the initial
costs are reduced."
Let us hope that the Minister will follow this
excellent example in the near future.
Workmen's Compensation Commission.
Mr. Patrick F. O'Reilly, a member of the Council
of the Society, was appointed by the Government
as a member of the Workmen's Compensation
Commission which was set up to examine the existing
Workmen's Compensation code and
to
report
whether any change
is necessary or desirable,
particularly the question of replacing the present
system by a scheme of national insurance.
This
is obviously of vital interest to the solicitors'
profession as well as the public and the business
community.
The government asked the Society
to submit a memorandum of evidence and a circular
has been sent to all the Bar Associations asking
for their views.
Sub-Committee of the Council
with members of the Society not on the Council
but having special experience of this matter has
been set up and a memorandum will be prepared
for submission to the Government in due course.
I do not propose to comment further except to say
that any proposition to transfer from the Courts
to the administrative machine a jurisdiction which
has been satisfactorily operated for over 50 years,
ana which has unequalled facilities for determining
questions of fact, should not be adopted without
the most serious consideration.
Labourers' Acts.
We have made representations to the Minister
for Local Government on the subject of the inade
quacy of the scales of costs allowed in connection
with improvement schemes and at a meeting of
the Department in July last we reached agreement
with the officials on proposed new scales.
The
reform was not overdue as the initial representations
were made in 1948. The Order has been held up
on questions of drafting but we hope that it will
not be delayed very much longer. In the meantime
it will interest members to know that we hope that
the Order when operative will take effect as from
ist October, 1955.
Land Commission.
The Council have been in correspondence with
the Land Commission about the unsatisfactory
scales of costs in connection with proceedings for
the resumption or acquisition of tenanted land. A
deputation was received by the Land Commission,
consisting of members of the Council with special
knowledge of this matter, and we put forward the
submission tnat justice requires that where land or
otner property is compulsorily acquired by tne
State, the dispossessed owner should receive full
indemnity not alone in regard to the price or com
pensation paid but in regard to his costs and expenses
in connection with the acquisition. Yet the costs
payable under the present scales—particularly in
resumption cases—are only comparable with the
District Court Scale, and the unfortunate owner