§ Mr. Dixonasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what progress has been made in the repayment of post-war credits under the general release to certificate holders; and what proposals he has as regards repayment to credit holders not at present entitled to claim.
§ Mr. NottUp to mid-July about 2 million claims had been received and 1.9 million settled.
As to the second part of the Question, I propose that repayment of post-war credits to people who have not been able to produce a certificate should begin on 1st January, 1973. I envisage that this final stage of the repayment should be spread over the 12 months ending 31st December, 1973, and, like the current arrangements for repayment to certificate holders, should be staggered on an alphabetic basis by reference to the credit holder's name. Interest will be paid on these repayments at 2½ per cent. compound from 1st October, 1959.
340WThe necessary Statutory Instrument will be laid in the autumn and full publicity will be given in due time as to when and how application should be made. In the meantime, potential claimants are asked not to make inquiries to their local tax offices.
The Inland Revenue will in many cases be able to trace from current tax records or from indexes of credit holders the post-war credit records of a claimant not producing a certificate. Where checks of this nature are unsuccessful further searches will be possible only where a claimant is able to give the names and addresses of his employers during the war years.