§ Mr. Geoffrey Stevensasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement about the future of the Excess Profits Tax Refunds Advisory Panel.
§ Mr. H. MacmillanYes. The Panel was set up on 2nd September, 1946, under Section 42 of the Finance (No. 2) Act, 1945, to approve the arrangements for the use of the refund in cases where it was not to be used in the original trade or business by the person who carried on that trade or business, or where there had been a change of ownership, and to inquire, after the event, in such cases as it thought fit into how the net amount of the refund had been dealt with, so as to ensure that all statutory undertakings had been observed.
Section 32 of the Finance Act, 1953, in effect abolished all functions of the Panel except inquiry into the use to which refunds had been put, and that was restricted to cases where breaches of undertakings had been committed before the commencement of the Act.
The Panel has now reported to me that its work is completed, and has recommended that the Panel should be dissolved. I have accepted this recommendation, and the Panel is formally dissolved today.
I wish to record my appreciation of the valuable work done by the Panel during its period of office and to express my thanks to the Chairman, Sir William Coates, and to all its members for the generosity with which they have given their servicese whenever called upon.