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PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

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paid to a Provident Fund from which the contributor would receive on retirement a lump sum payment, there appeared to be no means of getting round the difficulty unless the Rules of the Bureau Fund could be altered, so as to comply with the con- ditions of the Act. In reply to a question, he stated that under the present arrange- ments, a contributor would not be liable to income tax on the lump sum payment made to him from the Fund on retirement, as this would be in the nature of an addition to capital

Mr. Goldburg explained that a similar difficulty had arisen in regard to the fund at the Crown Agents' Office: the proposal under consideration in that case was to substitute "pensions" at a certain age for lump sum payments, with the option to commute such pensions. As, however, it had been definitely decided that the Bureau could not in any circumstances grant pensions, the Sub-Committee felt that this expedient would not be suitable for the Bureau.

Assuming that the concession now provided for in the Act could not be extended, it was suggested that the rules might be altered so as to allow a contributor on retirement three alternative courses :-

(i) To receive in lieu of the total sum to his credit an annuity during his life; or (it). To receive during his life an annuity equal to the interest arising from the total sum, which, on his death, would become payable to his legal personal representative; or

(iii) To receive the total sum on retirement as at present; and it was recom- mended that the Board of Inland Revenue should be sounded as to whether, on the rules being so amended, the Fund would be likely to be approved.

In the case of the first alternative being adopted the contributions, if the fund were approved, would be exempt from income tax; if the second were adopted, the lump sum might, it was surmised, be subject to income tax in accordance with the regulations issued by the Board of Inland Revenue on the 10th of November, 1921 (No. 1699, Statutory Rules and Orders); if the third alternative were chosen, it could be arranged that the Income Tax Authorities might be notified.

The Sub-Committee decided that it was desirable that efforts should be made to meet the difficulty referred to; that the Secretary should make inquiries and report further to the Sub-Committee, submitting for their consideration at the same time the draft of such amended rules as might be thought necessary as a result of the inquiries made.

The question whether the consent of present contributors would be required for amendment of the rules was raised; but it was decided that this need not be considered until the general question of what amendment (if any) was practicable or desirable had been settled.

3. The Sub-Committee considered certain proposals submitted by the Director for a revision of the substantive salaries of members of the Bureau.

It was explained that when the present scales were drawn up in June, 1920, there was no very close parallel by which the Managing Committee could be guided. Since then the salaries of the staff of the British Museum had been revised, and in most cases the salaries approved were in excess--in some instances, considerably in excess of those fixed for the Bureau.

Dr. Marshall pointed out that there had been a large reduction in the cost of living bonus since the scales for the Bureau were fixed, and he stated that the pro- posals which he wished to submit would probably involve only a small addition to the actual "mean expenditure on salaries contemplated when the present scales were fixed. So far as the finances of the Bureau were concerned, he was satisfied that such an increase in salaries could be met without difficulty.

A further point made by Dr. Neave was that many of the staff work "over- time." No provision had been made for overtime pay, and he was anxious to avoid raising the question; but unless some improvement in the substantive scales were effected to bring them more into line with those of the Museum staff, he feared that it would be necessary to consider payments for extra work of this nature.

Having regard to all the circumstances, and more especially to the fact that the members of the Bureau work in close touch with the Natural History Museum staff, the Headquarters of the Bureau being actually accommodated in the Museum, the Sub-Committee agreed in principle that some revision of salaries was desirable in order to secure a closer approximation between the salaries paid in the Museum and the Bureau; and to facilitate the requisite consideration of the matter, the Director and the Secretary were authorized to prepare a statement, for submission

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to the Sub-Committee, showing (1) the proposed rates of pay as compared with present rates and the rates now approved for corresponding appointments, if such exist, in the Museum, and (2) the general financial effect of the proposals.

4. Dr. Marshall raised the question of payment to Major Austen for his trans- lation of Monsieur Hegh's work on tsetse flies.

The translation had proved a longer and more laborious undertaking than was at first contemplated. Major Austen had taken the greatest pains to ensure absolute accuracy, and had added considerably to the subject matter. The result was a most valuable handbook, and in Dr. Marshall's opinion the sum of £50, which had been paid to Major Austen for the work, was not adequate.

The Sub-Committee authorized the payment of a further sum of £50 from the funds of the Bureau, making £100 in all.

19170

No. 41.

MINUTES OF THE TWENTY-NINTH MEETING OF THE FINANCE SUB- COMMITTEE OF THE IMPERIAL BUREAU OF ENTOMOLOGY, HELD)

AT THE COLONIAL OFFICE ON THURSDAY, 20th April, 1922.

Present:

SIR SIDNEY HARMER, Chairman.

DR. BAGSHAWE.

SIR HERBERT READ.

DR. MARSHALL, Director.

DR. NEAVE, Assistant Director. MR. PARKINSON, Secretary.

1. THE minutes of the Twenty-Eighth Meeting of the Sub-Committee* were

approved.

2. (i) The Secretary reported the result of inquiries made of the Board of Inland Revenue after the last meeting as to the possibility of securing relief from income tax on the contributions paid by members of the Bureau to the Provident Fund. It had been ascertained that the suggested alternatives put forward at the last meeting would not be effective, and that if this relief were to be secured it would be necessary to revise the whole basis on which the Provident Fund was con- stituted. The Finance Act, 1921, had been drafted, in accordance with the recom- mendation of the Royal Commission on Income Tax, so as definitely to exclude provident funds from the operation of the clauses as to exemption of contributions from income tax, and there was no prospect of its being amended to include such funds. An alternative suggestion made by Mr. J. W. Mitchell of the Board of Inland Revenue that a scheme of insurance might be substituted for the Provident Fund had been considered. The premiums would be exempt from income tax, and to that extent the object in view would have been met; but there were serious dis- advantages from the point of view of the contributors, and this alternative did not appear to be worth further consideration.

In the course of the discussion at the Board of Inland Revenue, it had been stated quite definitely by Mr. Mitchell that under the existing rules of the Provident Fund the lump sum payment would not be reckoned as part of the contributor's income, and that there could thus be no question of a contributor paying income tax twice over on the same sums.

Dr. Marshall had discussed the matter further with Dr. Neave and other members of the Bureau, and it was generally agreed among them that the fact that the lump sum payment would not be liable to income tax materially affected the position, and that, in the circumstances, it was not necessary to pursue the matter further.

The Sub-Committee accepted this view and decided not to recommend any revision of the existing rules of the Provident Fund.

(ii) Dr. Neave called attention to the recommendation of the Sub-Committee agreed upon at the Twenty-Seventh Meeting relative to the crediting of more than two and a-half per cent. of the pay issued to members of the Bureau from the 1st October, 1909, to the 31st March, 1921.

* No. 10.

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