§ MR. SUMMERBELLI beg to ask the President of the Local Government Board if he can give the number of death certificates issued to relatives of deceased members of friendly collecting societies during the period 1st January to 31st March, 1906; the 982 number of death certificates issued to relatives of deceased members of trade unions during the period 1st January to 31st March, 1906; the number of death certificates issued to relatives of deceased assurants in the assurance companies during the period 1st January to 31st March, 1906; and whether he will state as to why a uniform charge of 1s. or 1s. 3d. per certificate of death should not apply equally in respect to claims on assurance companies as to claims on friendly collecting societies.
§ THE PEESIDENT OF THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT BOARD, (Mr. JOHN BURNS,) BatterseaI am informed by the Registrar-General that the certificates referred to are issued by local registrars only, and that no returns of the numbers of such certificates are or over have been received at the Central Office. He further states that if Returns were required they would have to be specially collected from more than 2,000 registrars in England and Wales alone, and, when obtained, the certificates could not be classified according to the descriptions in the Question. He adds that the value of such a Return would not be commensurate with the trouble and expense of its preparation. As regards the last part of the Question, I may point out that the charges referred to are fixed by statutory provisions which do not apply to assurance companies.