§ 57 and 58. Sir A. SHIRLEY BENN forasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) the. causes of the delay in completing, out of the still unexpended sum of over £400,000, the payment of reparation awards of the Sumner Commission; how much longer it will be before these payments are completed; whether, when completed, they will absorb the whole of that sum; and, if not, how the balance remaining will be divided among those for whom the £5,000,000 was voted by Parliament;
(2) the causes of the delay in completing, out of the still unexpended sum of nearly £36,000, the payment of belated reparation claims; how much longer it will be before these payments are completed; whether, when completed, the whole of the £300,000 will be expended; and, if not, how the balance remaining will be used in order to carry out the intention for which Parliament voted the £300,000?
Mr. GUINNESSI understand that the chief cause of delay in completing these payments is the failure of the claimants to return the forms sent to them, or to answer inquiries addressed to them, by the Reparation Claim Section of the Board of Trade. In other cases it is difficult to ascertain the present addresses of the claimants. In the circumstances, I am not in a position to say by what date the payments will be completed, as this mainly depends on the claimants themselves. In reply to the last two parts of the questions, I would refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for the Edge Hill Division (Mr. Hayes) on 9th July, of which I am sending him a copy.