§ 2.9 p.m.
§ LORD MITCHISONMy Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question which stands in my name on the Order Paper.
§ [The Question was as follows:
§ To ask Her Majesty's Government what has been the annual increase or decrease recently in the value of investments held or managed by the National Debt Commissioners, other than the National Insurance Funds, about which figures were given in a Written Answer in another place on June 9, 1969.]
TILE LORD PRIVY SEAL (LORD SHACKLETON)My Lords, since the accounting periods for the separate funds managed by the Commissioners are not all identical, figures of increases or decreases for all the Commissioners' investments at one common date could not be produced without a disproportionate amount of work. Figures at widely different dates would give a confused picture. However, 96 per cent. of the investments held or managed by the 295 National Debt Commissioners are in two main groups of funds, the National Insurance Funds and the Savings Banks Funds. The latter comprise 62 per cent. of the total. The remaining 4 per cent. is spread over a number of small funds.
In respect of the Savings Banks Funds the position is as follows. The current market value of the investments held by the Commissioners on the Savings Banks Funds decreased from £2,589 million by £13 million between the end of the year 1966 and 1967, and by a further £84 million by the end of 1968. The gross liabilities for the funds remained, broadly speaking, constant.
§ LORD MITCHISONMy Lords, I thank my noble friend.