HL Deb 25 July 1994 vol 557 cc65-6WA
Lord Marlesford

asked Her Majesty's Government:

The date on which the current £50 banknotes were first issued; what the face value of such a note would now have to be for it to have the same purchasing power as it had on that date; whether they will now issue a £100 banknote; and, if not why not.

Lord Henley

The current £50 notes are from Series D and Series E, the Series D note having been first issued on 20th March 1981 and the Series E note on 20th April 1994. For a note issued today to purchase the same amount of goods in real terms as a £50 Series D note, it would have to be worth £10049p (based on the: change in the retail price index between March 1981 and June 1994).

The Bank of England has not presented any proposal for the issue of a £100 banknote, and lie Government have no plans to authorise the issue of such a note. Demand for the £50 notes is very low, and there is little evidence of demand for a higher denomination note.