§ Mr. GARDNERasked the President of the Board of Trade whether his attention has been called to the certificate granted by Mr. Robert T. Smallbones, consul at Munich, on 29th April, 1921, to one Leopold Benda, a British subject who had served in the British Army for many years, and on retiring had settled in Germany to engage in commerce, and on the outbreak of war was confronted by the German Government with the alternative of naturalisation or internment; whether he is aware that such certificate states that Mr. Benda cannot be deemed to have lost British nationality by purporting to assume German nationality during the War, and his naturalisation in Germany on 23rd March, 1915, is therefore deemed null and void in English law; that the assets 1128W of the said Leopold Benda in this country have nevertheless been attached by the administrator of ex-enemy German property; and if he will publish a copy of the correspondence that has passed between the Foreign Office and the British Consulate at Munich authorising the grant of such certificate and relative thereto?
§ Mr. H. WILLIAMSIt was decided in the High Court in July, 1921 (inre Chamberlain's settlement), that in a case of this kind the person concerned is a German national according to German municipal law and his property therefore comes within the operation of the Treaty of Peace and Treaty of Peace Order. In these circumstances Mr. Leopold Benda's property in this country was dealt with as subject to the charge imposed on German property pursuant to such Order. Mr. Benda applied to Lord Blanesburgh's Ex-enemy Property Committee for release of his property on compassionate grounds, and effect was given to the recommendation of the Committee that the available property should be released. A considerable part, however, of the property claimed by Mr. Benda was not available for release to him, as it consisted of unallocated securities held in this country for account of German banks, and in such cases the Administrator of German Property accounts for the securities to the bank concerned. It is understood that Mr. Benda has applied to and received compensation from the German Government as a German national. There is no case for publication of correspondence as suggested in the last part of the question.