§ 5. Mr. Douglasasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate the Treasury has made of the numbers who will be exempt from estate duty if the whole of the estate is left to the surviving spouse for the capital ranges £15,000, to £20,000, and £25,000 to £30,000, respectively.
§ Mr. Patrick JenkinAbout 4,000 and 1,500.
§ Mr. DouglasDoes the hon. Gentleman accept that the total cost of the remissions in estate duty is well over £60 million in one year? Will he contrast that with the penal reductions in social security benefits to people who have very small capital sums set aside, sums of less than £1,000? These people are left to try to live for one week on about £4.
§ Mr. JenkinI am not sure how far the sort of comparison to which the hon. Gentleman invites my attention is valid. I am certain that raising the threshold and giving the relief on estate duty to widows has been widely welcomed—and not only on this side of the House.