asked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury what was the average aggregate amount of the bank notes of the Scottish banks of issue in each of the last three financial years; what was the rate of composition in place of the Stamp Duty on them; and what was the total amount of that composition paid to the Commissioners of Inland Revenue in each of these three years?

The average aggregate amount of bank notes of Scottish banks of issue in each of the last three financial years is as follows:

	£
1940–41	29,820,334
1941–42	35,816,141
1942–43	46,321,094

The composition for Stamp Duty on bank notes issued in Scotland is charged half-yearly at 4s. 2d. per £100 on the average weekly amount of notes in circulation on the Saturdays in the half-years ending in June and December. Information as to the amount paid in composi- tion for the three months ending the 31st March, 1943, is not yet available, but the amounts paid for the last three years ending on the 31st December are as follow:Year ending 31st December, 1940—£119,948 2s. 6d.Year ending 31st December, 1941—£140,619 3s. 4dYear ending 31st December, 1942—£182,400 4s. 2d.