§ 11. Mr. Liptonasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, in view of the growing disuse of the new halfpenny, he will now withdraw this coin from circulation.
§ Mr. HigginsNo, Sir: this coin, equivalent to 1.2 old pennies, has an important rôle to play in price shading. It is widely used, especially in food prices, and almost 1,150 million are in circulation.
§ Mr. LiptonBut with the cost of living rising at its present rate, will it be long before this wretched little coin ceases to have any value whatever, since already the banks ignore it in calculating their balances? It will not be long before this coin follows the old farthing and the old halfpenny.
§ Mr. HigginsWith respect to the hon. Gentleman. I think he has the necessary action the wrong way round. The fact is that this coin enables traders to shade their prices, and clearly if the coin did not exist it is likely that there would be considerable rounding up. It is an amount of considerable value when compared with the previous value of the old penny. I believe that it has a useful rôle to play.
§ Miss FookesWould my hon. Friend consider increasing the present miserly size of this coin since there are difficulties in handling it, especially for the elderly who may have arthritic finger joints?
§ Mr. HigginsThis matter was decided by the previous Administration. It is right to stress that it is important that there is a size/weight relationship between the various differentials. If we were to interfere with that, it would create considerable difficulties for organisations handling coins.