HC Deb 26 June 1947 vol 439 cc681-2
54. Mr. Granville Sharp

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer why, on the death of a person who has a joint account in a Post Office Savings Bank, the Inland Revenue Department request the Post Office not to transfer the account to the surviving owner until the deceased person's non-liability to death duties has been established; whether he is aware that compliance with this request, coupled with his Department's delay in establishing such non-liability, causes hardship to many widows who have no other savings; and what action he proposes taking to remove the cause of such hardship

Mr. Glenvil Hall

The object of these arrangements is to safeguard the Revenue. If my hon. Friend will send me particulars of any cases which he has in mind I will have inquiry made.

Mr. Sharp

While accepting my right hon. Friend's offer to deal promptly with individual cases, may I ask him if he can justify this action of freezing small savings in order to assist the Inland Revenue Department?

Mr. Glenvil Hall

They were not always small. The difficulty has been that, frequently, there were joint accounts of this kind where although one of the persons, in whose names the account was held, died, the other was free to draw out the deposit. We are looking into that matter to see if my right hon. Friend can alter the limit.