HC Deb 20 October 1953 vol 518 cc1864-6

(1) Subject to the provisions of this section, any income received by a custodian from the investment of moneys coming into his hands (whether in pursuance of the Act of 1939 or otherwise) in his capacity as custodian, being income received by way of discount on the purchase by him of Treasury Bills or by way of interest on other loans made by him to the Treasury or on moneys placed by him in his name on deposit or current account at a bank, shall belong to the Crown and be paid into the Exchequer.

(2) The last foregoing subsection shall be deemed to have had effect as from the coming into operation of the Trading with the Enemy (Custodian) Order, 1939, so however, that it shall not be construed as authorising or requiring the repayment of any sums paid by a custodian before the passing of this Act otherwise than into the Exchequer.

(3) Where a custodian, whether after or before the passing of this Act, pays or has paid to any person a capital sum on the footing that—

  1. (a) it represents or represented money which was paid to the custodian as being money due to an enemy, but which was not in fact money due to an enemy, or
  2. (b) it represents or represented the proceeds of property which was transferred to the custodian as being enemy property, but which was not in fact enemy property,
the person to whom the capital sum is or was paid shall be entitled to receive from the custodian interest thereon at the rate of three-quarters of one per cent. per annum from the date on which the custodian received the money referred to in paragraph (a) of this subsection or the proceeds referred to in paragraph (b) thereof, as the case may be, to the date of payment of the capital sum:

Provided that—

  1. (i) where the payment of the capital sum was made before the passing of this Act, the right to interest thereon under this subsection shall not arise unless a claim for it in writing is made to the custodian within one year from the date of the passing of this Act and there is produced to the custodian such evidence in support of the claim as the custodian may reasonably require; and
  2. (ii) where in such a case the person to whom the capital sum was paid has since died, or any other event has occurred whereby the right to the interest, if vested in him immediately before that event, would thereupon have vested in some other person, the right to claim the interest shall be treated as having devolved as if that right had been vested in him immediately before his death or immediately before that event, as the case may be, and, if the right is duly exercised, the interest shall be paid to the persons claiming under him accordingly.

(4) For the purpose of making payments of interest under the last foregoing subsection a custodian who at the passing of this Act has in his hands, or thereafter receives, any income such as is mentioned in subsection (1) of this section shall set aside out of that income such sums as the Treasury may from time to time direct; and out of any sums so set aside the custodian shall pay any interest becoming payable by him under the last foregoing subsection and shall pay the balance thereof (if any) into the Exchequer.

(5) In this section the expression "money due to an enemy" means money which would, but for the existence of a state of war, have been payable to or for the benefit of a person who was an enemy within the meaning of the Act of 1939.—[Mr. H. Strauss.]

Brought up, and read the First time.

Mr. H. Strauss

I beg to move, "That the Clause be read a Second time."

This is technically a new Clause though it is printed in the Bill as Clause 4. This matter has been dealt with in Second Reading and on other occasions. The Clause seeks to make it entirely clear that the interest received by the Custodian, whether by discount on Treasury Bills or otherwise, belongs to the Crown

Question put, and agreed to.

Clause read a Second time, and added to the Bill.