§ 38. Mr. MACQUISTENasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, seeing that a considerable saving would be effected by the use of nickel instead of silver, and that nickel is a better looking and safer metal and lends itself less to imitation than silver, he will consider substituting nickel for silver in the case of the smaller silver coins up to and including the shilling?
§ Major ELLIOTMy hon. Friend's suggestion has been fully examined on a number of occasions in the past, particularly in 1927, and rejected for reasons of policy. Those reasons still hold good; moreover, the price of nickel has since risen substantially and that of silver has fallen so that the possibility of savings is to-day comparatively small. I am satisfied that no useful purpose would be served by reopening the question now.