§ Lord Geddes asked Her Majesty's Government:
§ What progress has been made on abolishing game licences.
The Minister of State, Home Office (Earl Ferrers)My Lords, the matter has been under review and we will announce our conclusions shortly.
§ Lord GeddesMy Lords, may I, I hope not misguidedly, thank my noble friend most sincerely for that reply, which I take as being distinctly encouraging? However, I remind him that the new season for game licences commences on Monday week. Is it too much to hope that "shortly" in this instance means very shortly?
Earl FerrersMy Lords, these are always matters of very difficult interpretation. I would only say to my noble friend that sometimes it is better to have travelled hopefully than to have arrived.
§ Lord Boyd-CarpenterMy Lords, can my noble friend say why the future of this silly little tax should take so long to determine?
Earl FerrersMy Lords, silly little things often take a long time to determine particularly when there are all sorts of other people and considerations which have to be taken into account before coming to a conclusion, which I rather think my noble friend Lord Boyd-Carpenter hopes the Government will arrive at. However, I will not tell him whether we will or not.
§ Lord MarlesfordMy Lords, as a great many people spend a great deal of money shooting game, is it not perfectly reasonable that the Revenue should profit therefrom, and, before rushing into abolishing them, would it not be at least worth considering having a hefty hike in game licences so that they cover the total cost of administration and yield a useful profit to the Revenue?
Earl FerrersMy Lords, that is of course one of the considerations which has been taken into account. One of the other considerations is the fact that many people who ought to do so do not bother to obtain game licences.