I propose:—
(1) That there shall be charged, levied, and paid on the occasions hereinafter mentioned on and by every person who, under any Act passed or to be passed during the financial year beginning on the 1st day of April, 1929, takes out or renews a licence for dealing in game an excise duty of three pounds in respect of every licence so taken out or renewed.
(2) That the duty mentioned in this Resolution in respect of any such licence as aforesaid shall be charged, levied, and paid at the time of taking out such licence and also on every renewal of such licence and shall be paid and collected by means of stamps denoting the amount of such duty impressed on such licences and renewals, and the Stamp Duties Management Act, 1891, shall apply to such duty and stamps.
(3) It is hereby declared that it is expedient in the public interest that this Resolution shall have statutory effect under the provisions of the Provisional Collection of Taxes Act, 1927 (No. 7 of 1927).
This Resolution is necessary in this particular year because of Section 17 which has been inserted in the Game Preservation Bill. It says: "A Justice of the District Court upon an application being made to him by any person and upon payment by such person of the fee required by law may, subject to the provisions of this section, issue to such person a licence (in this Act referred to as a game dealer's licence) for the sale of game ....."
There formerly was a law in existence requiring the payment of a licence duty by game dealers. There was a licence duty payable by game dealers which was imposed by Section 2 of the Game Licence Act of 1860 which fixed the rate of duty at £2 per annum. When the Department of Justice was dealing with the Fire Arms Act in 1925, it was intended to introduce a measure dealing with the question of game preservation and game dealers' licences. That, however, was not dealt with at the time, and a new scale of duty for firearms was prescribed in the Finance Act of 1925, and the old provisions relating to gun licences and game licences were repealed, including the provisions of the Act of 1860. That was the only statutory authority for the issue of game dealers' licences. Consequently, since the 1st August, 1925, there has been no necessity for a game dealer to take out a game dealer's licence. It is proposed in the Game Preservation Bill, which is before the House, that it shall be again necessary, and provision is being made by this Resolution to charge a licence duty of £3 per annum. A couple of years ago a section such as this was inserted in the Finance Act, but it has not come into operation, as the Game Bill requiring the taking out of a licence by game dealers was not passed.