§ MR. EDMUND ROBERTSON (Dundee)I beg to ask Mr. Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he will consent to the Return of the valuations of publicans' licences, for the purposes of the death duties, which appears on the Paper to-day.
§ SIR M. HICKS BEACHI am afraid the Return cannot be given, because, in 856 the first place, no separate record is kept in the Estate Duty Office of the values placed upon the estates of persons occupying licensed houses; and, even if the cases were extracted from the records at the expense of much cost and trouble, little or no light would be thrown on the particular point to which, I gather, the hon. Member's question is directed, inasmuch as in valuing the estates of publicans the value of the possession of the licence is not so specifically separated in the records from the rest of the estate as to be capable of accurate statement in a Return.