HALLMARKING (Hansard, 25 March 1970)

§ Mr. Jerry Wiggin (Weston-super-Mare)

I beg to move, That leave be given to bring in a Bill to amend the various statutes so far as they relate to exemptions from compulsory hall-marking of gold and silver wares, and to provide for the compulsory hallmarking of wares made of platinum. Pure gold and pure silver are soft metals. They wear away and lose shape when made into wares unless they are alloyed with copper and other base metals. This necessary adulteration provides the dishonest with an opportunity for fraud, and it is fraud that is not easily detected by the eye. It is, therefore, necessary to set standards for the content of gold and silver and hallmark those wares which pass that standard.

I do not think that I would be exaggerating if I said that hallmarking is the oldest form of consumer protection in the world. There is some possibility that even the Romans used it, and the first Statutes in this country were introduced in England in 1300 and in Scotland in 1457.

The process of hallmarking consists of submitting the article, normally by the manufacturer, in a semi-completed state to one of the assay officers. A sample is physically scraped from all parts, including each link of a chain or hinge or bolt which might make up the article being assayed. A part of the scrapings is taken and tested for its purety and content. The other part is placed in the Diet Box.

I am sorry that the Chancellor of the Exchequer is not in the Chamber. In his other capacity as Master of the Mint, he is responsible for taking the Diet Box once a year and testing its contents to ensure that the assay offices are doing their job. He requires a deposit of several hundred pounds from the assay masters to ensure their honesty.

Once it has been established that the article is up to the necessary standard, it is marked with the mark of the maker, the year, the assay office at which it is marked, and the standard of the metal. The minimum standard for gold in this country is 9 carats, or nine twenty-fourths. For silver, it is 925 parts in 1,000. My Bill proposes that platinum should be 1443 included at a standard of 950 parts in 1,000.

The hallmarking laws are of great value to the public, who receive a guarantee of quality. They are of value to the manufacturer who has an easy and reliable method of quality control and who is also protected against dishonest competition. They are of value to the retailer, who is relieved of the responsibility of checking articles. Finally, they are valuable to Government Departments, the police, Customs and Excise, exporters and many others.

It is worth bearing in mind that the vast majority of gold and silver articles are worth less than £10. Therefore, the protection which is given to them is all the more important, since the purchaser of an article costing perhaps several thousand pounds is not only likely to be careful about the content of the metal, but also perfectly capable of protecting himself, whereas the vast majority of people who buy a ring, a cigarette case, or some other small article look to the assay offices and the hallmarking laws for protection. Moreover, it is not only the first purchaser who is protected, since the article is protected throughout its life by the mark.

The assaying is carried out at present in this country by four assay offices. They are the Wardens and Commonalty of the Mystery of Goldsmiths of the City of London, incorporated by charter in 1327; the Incorporation of Goldsmiths of the City of Edinburgh, incorporated by charter in 1687; the Guardians of the Standard of the Wrought Plate within Sheffield, created by Statute in 1772; and the Guardians of the Standard of the Wrought Plate in Birmingham, incorporated in 1824. Perhaps I might say that I am very proud that my family have been Guardians in Birmingham for more than 100 years without a break. It may be that that is why I am interested in this Bill.

Although the first Statute that was effective was in 1300, there was an Ordinance in 1238 dealing with the matter. However, the Statute of 1300 is of the greatest first interest and provides that no one is … to work gold worse than the touch of Paris", 1444 and that the wardens are to go from shop to shop amongst the goldsmiths … to assay if their gold be of the same touch. This early method of assaying consisted of rubbing the article against a stone and comparing the mark so made with a mark made by a needle of known content.

Over the years more and more Statutes were added. One in 1757 made counterfeiting hallmarks a felony punishable by death. In 1772, a milder attitude was taken and the penal penalty was replaced by transportation for 14 years. As far as I know, those laws have been repealed.

But in the present day we find the noble Lord, Lord Denning, then Lord Justice Denning, saying in a judgment in 1952: I would observe that in 1856 and 1879 Select Committees said that the law as to hallmarking was uncertain owing to the number of statutes in which it was to be found; and they expressed the opinion that the consolidation and amendment of the law should be carried out without further delay. Now, 73 years later, in 1952, I may, perhaps, be permitted to express the same opinion. And, 18 years after that, perhaps I may also express the same opinion.

The Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Trade, said in answer to a Question on 28th January, after a little heart-searching within the Board of Trade, I think: We are satisfied that reform of the law should be based on compulsory hall-marking of gold, silver and platinum wares, with limited exemptions. Extensive consultation on the complex details will be required before we can propose legislation."—[OFFICIAL REPORT, 28th January, 1970; Vol. 794, c. 1522.] The Stone Committee, set up by the Conservative Government to examine the matter, said: Our principal recommendation is that a compulsory system of Assay and Hallmarking should, subject to certain exceptions, continue for all articles having a gold or silver content, and should be initiated for all articles having a platinum content, … I am delighted that the Government are preparing a full and comprehensive Bill, but I am sure that I would not be making an unreliable guess if I said that they will not introduce it this Session. On the return of a Conservative Government it is possible that we shall have more urgent matters to deal with. This short Bill would remove some of the worst anomalies and, I believe, satisfy 1445 the trade, the assay offices, manufacturers and retailers as a temporary measure. It will include platinum, a metal four times more valuable than gold. There is a Clause to apply protection to the descriptive words. It is interesting that in all these Statutes no one has said so far that gold shall be gold and silver shall be silver. My Bill would include that statement.

The main anomalies have been in exemptions, so we propose to abolish all previous exemptions and to include a limited list. I shall not go through them as they are all in the Bill. At least one is of great importance to our export industry and is much needed.

This matter is of vast public interest. Almost every individual has an article that he or she values and treasures. The New Yorker carried a quarter page advertisement inviting the public to write in for particulars about hallmarking, and over 15,000 people applied. When Woman carried a similar advertisement last year 28,000 people applied for particulars. I am sure that the matter is of interest throughout the country and in many countries abroad.