§ 67. Viscount Hinchingbrookeasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer why the Exchange Control Department of the 1325 Bank of England has refused Mrs. Grace Shelton, Uphill Camp, Preston, Weymouth, permission to send a pair of binoculars to her son, Mr. Derek Shelton, a mining engineer in Peru.
§ Mr. Glenvil HallIt is necessary to control the sending of gifts in kind outside the sterling area in order to secure that we get a due return of foreign exchange for our exports. There is a general exemption for gifts not exceeding £5 in value sent by post, and special permission can be given on application for gifts on special occasions, for example a wedding gift, of a somewhat higher value. The gift in question exceeded the limit of value normally allowed, and in any case it was not indicated that it was for a special occasion.
§ Viscount HinchingbrookeIs it not a fact that the binoculars were intended to be used by the son in mining surveying and that they would have made him a more efficient person and would thus have earned more dollars for this country? Will the right hon. Gentleman look at these futile regulations again to see whether parents may be allowed to sent their children reasonable gifts?
§ Mr. Glenvil HallThe answer is that the regulations are not futile and that, if we can, we have to conserve the right of this country to earn dollars abroad.
§ Mr. ErrollHas the prohibition of this gift in any way increased the flow of foreign exchange to this country?
§ Mr. Glenvil HallThis is the case of an individual and I do not necessarily want to go into details. Actually the monetary value of the gift in question was pretty high.