§
Motion made, and Question proposed,
That a Supplementary sum, not exceeding £9,370, be granted to His Majesty, to defray the charge which will come in course of payment during the year ending on the 31st day of March, 1939, for the salaries and expenses of the British Museum (Natural History), including a grant-in-aid.
§ 9.4 p.m.
§ The Financial Secretary to the Treasury (Captain Euan Wallace)Hon. Members will find an explanation of this Supplementary Estimate on page 17. It is simply a corollary of the Bill which I had the honour to present to the House last July to enable the British Museum to take over the munificent bequest of the late Lord Rothschild of his museum at Tring. The museum was taken over by the trustees of the British Museum on 21st September last year, and in consequence of the acceptance of the bequest the taxpayer has become liable for the running cost of the museum to the end of the financial year. That involves a charge upon normal sub-heads of approximately £1,800. In addition to these the trustees are responsible, as I explained during the Second Reading of the Bill, for the Estate 1856 Duty and Succession Duty on the bequest of a sum of £3,500, and they are also responsible for reimbursing the outlay of the executors of the late Lord Rothschild in running this museum between the time of his death and the time it was actually taken over by the trustees. The total of those items is £9,900, which has been offset by a small saving of £530, making the Estimate £9,370. I hope that with that explanation the Committee will agree to this Supplementary Estimate. Question put, and agreed to.