Currency and Bank Notes Act 1928

1 Amendment with respect to powers of Bank of England to issue bank notes

(1) Notwithstanding anything in any Act—

(a) the Bank may issue bank notes for one pound and for ten shillings :

(b) any such bank notes may be issued at any place out of London without being made payable at that place, and wherever issued shall be payable only at the head office of the Bank:

(c) any such bank notes may be put into circulation in Scotland and Northern Ireland, and shall be current and legal tender in Scotland and Northern Ireland as in England.

(2) Section six of the [3 & 4 Will. 4. c. 98.] Bank of England Act, 1833 (which provides that bank notes shall be legal tender), shall have effect as if for the words " shall be a legal tender " to the amount expressed in such note or notes and " shall be taken to be valid as a tender to such amount " for all sums above five pounds on all occasions on " which any tender of money may be legally made " there were substituted the words " shall be legal tender for the payment of any amount. "

(3) The following provisions shall have effect so long as subsection (1) of section one of the [15 & 16 Geo. 5. c. 29.] Gold Standard Act, 1925, remains in force—

(a) notwithstanding anything in the proviso to section six of the Bank of England Act, 1833, bank notes for one pound or ten shillings shall be deemed a legal tender of payment by the Bank or any branch of the Bank, including payment of bank notes:

(b) the holders of bank notes for five pounds and upwards shall be entitled, on a demand made at any time during office hours at the head office of the Bank or, in the case of notes payable at a branch of the Bank, either at the head office or at that branch, to require in exchange for the said bank notes for five pounds and upwards bank notes for one pound or ten shillings.

(4) The Bank shall have power, on giving not less than three months' notice in the London, Edinburgh and Belfast Gazettes, to call in the bank notes for one pound or ten shillings of any series on exchanging them for bank notes of the same value of a new series.

(5) Notwithstanding anything in section eight of the [1 & 2 Will. 4. c. 37.] Truck Act, 1831, the payment of wages in bank notes of one pound or ten shillings shall be valid, whether the workman does or does not consent thereto.

2 Amount of Bank of England note issue

(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act the Bank shall issue bank notes up to the amount representing the gold coin and gold bullion for the time being in the issue department, and shall in addition issue bank notes to the amount of two hundred and sixty million pounds in excess of the amount first mentioned in this section, and the issue of notes which the Bank are by or under this Act required or authorised to make in excess of the said first mentioned amount is in this Act referred to as " the fiduciary note issue."

(2) The Treasury may at any time on being requested by the Bank, direct that the amount of the fiduciary note issue shall for such period as may be determined by the Treasury, after consultation with the Bank, be reduced by such amount as may be so determined.

3 Securities for note issue to be held in issue department

(1) In addition to the gold coin and bullion for the time being in the issue department, the Bank shall from time to time appropriate to and hold in the issue department securities of an amount in value sufficient to cover the fiduciary note issue for the time being.

(2) The securities to be held as aforesaid may include silver coin to an amount not exceeding five and one-half million pounds.

(3) The Bank shall from time to time give to the Treasury such information as the Treasury may require with respect to the securities held in the issue department, but shall not be required to include any of the said securities in the account to be taken pursuant to section five of the [59 Geo. 3. c. 76.] Bank of England Act, 1819.

4 Transfer of currency notes issue to Bank of England

(1) As from the appointed day all currency notes issued under the [4 & 5 Geo. 5. c. 14.] Currency and Bank Notes Act, 1914, certified by the Treasury to be outstanding on that date (including currency notes covered by certificates issued to any persons under section two of the [4 & 5 Geo. 5. c. 72.] Currency and Bank Notes (Amendment) Act, 1914, but not including currency notes called in but not cancelled) shall, for the purpose of the enactments relating to bank notes and the issue thereof (including this Act) be deemed to be bank notes, and the Bank shall be liable in respect thereof accordingly.

(2) The currency notes to which subsection (1) of this section applies are in this Act referred to as " the transferred currency notes."

(3) At any time after the appointed day, the Bank shall have power, on giving not less than three months' notice in the London, Edinburgh and Belfast Gazettes, to call in the transferred currency notes on exchanging them for bank notes of the same value.

(4) Any currency notes called in but not cancelled before the appointed day may be exchanged for bank notes of the same value.

5 Transfer to Bank of certain part of assets of Currency Note Redemption Account

(1) On the appointed day, in consideration of the Bank undertaking liability in respect of the transferred currency notes, all the assets of the Currency Note Redemption Account other than Government securities shall be transferred to the issue department, and there shall also be transferred to the issue department out of the said assets Government securities of such an amount in value as will together with the other assets to be transferred as aforesaid represent in the aggregate the amount of the transferred currency notes.

For the purpose of this subsection the value of any marketable Government securities shall be taken to be their market price as on the appointed day less the accrued interest, if any, included in that price.

(2) Any bank notes transferred to the Bank under this section shall be cancelled.

(3) Such of the said Government securities not transferred to the Bank under the foregoing provisions of this section shall be realised and the, amount realised shall be paid into the Exchequer at such time and in such manner as the Treasury direct.

6 Profits of note issue to be paid to Treasury

(1) The Bank shall, at such times and in such manner as may be agreed between the Treasury and the Bank, pay to the Treasury an amount equal to the profits arising in respect of each year in the issue department, including the amount of any bank notes written off under section six of the [55 & 56 Vict. c. 48.] Bank Act, 1892, as amended by this Act, but less the amount of any bank notes so written off which have been presented for payment during the year and the amount of any currency notes called in but not cancelled before the appointed day which have been so presented.

(2) For the purposes of this section the amount of the profits arising in any year in the issue department shall, subject as aforesaid, be ascertained in such, manner as may be agreed between the Bank and Treasury.

(3) For the purposes of the Income Tax Acts any income of, or attributable to, the issue department shall be deemed to be income of the Exchequer, and any expenses of, or attributable to, the issue department shall be deemed not to be expenses of the Bank.

(4) The Bank shall cease to be liable to make any payment in consideration of their exemption from stamp duty on bank notes.

7 Amendment of s.6 of 55 & 56 Vict. c.48

Section six of the Bank Act, 1892, (which authorises the writing off of bank notes which are not presented for payment within forty years of the date of issue), shall have effect as if, in the case of notes for one pound or ten shillings, twenty years were substituted for forty years, and as if, in the case of any such notes being transferred currency notes, they had been issued on the appointed day and, in the case of any such notes not being transferred currency notes, they had been issued on the last day on which notes of the particular series of which they formed part were issued by the Bank.

8 Power to increase amount of fiduciary note issue

(1) If the Bank at any time represent to the Treasury that it is expedient that the amount of the fiduciary note issue shall be increased to some specified amount above two hundred and sixty million pounds, the Treasury may authorise the Bank to issue bank notes to such an increased amount, not exceeding the amount specified as aforesaid, and for such period, not exceeding six months, as the Treasury think proper.

(2) Any authority so given may be renewed or varied from time to time on the like representation and in like manner:

Provided that, notwithstanding the foregoing provision, no such authority shall be renewed so as to remain in force (whether with or without variation) after the expiration of a period of two years from the date on which it was originally given, unless Parliament otherwise determines.

(3) Any minute of the Treasury authorising an increase of the fiduciary note issue under this section shall be laid forthwith before both Houses of Parliament.

9 Amendment as to issue of notes by banks in Scotland and Northern Ireland

(1) For the purpose of any enactment which in the case of a bank in Scotland or Northern Ireland limits by reference to the amount of gold and silver coin held by any such bank the amount of the notes which that bank may have in circulation, bank notes held by that bank or by the Bank on account of that bank, shall be treated as being gold coin held by that bank.

(2) A bank in Scotland or Northern Ireland may hold the coin and bank notes by reference to which the amount of the bank notes which it is entitled to have in circulation is limited at such of its offices in Scotland or Northern Ireland, respectively, not exceeding two, as may from time to time be approved by the Treasury.

10 Amendment of s.6 of 7 & 8 Vict. c.32

The form prescribed by Schedule A to the Bank Charter Act, 1844, for the account to be issued weekly by the Bank under section six of that Act may be modified to such an extent as the Treasury, with the concurrence of the Bank, consider necessary, having regard to the provisions of this Act.

11 Power of Bank of England to require persons to make returns of and to sell gold

(1) With a view to the concentration of the gold reserves and to the securing of economy in the use of gold, the following provisions of this section shall have effect so long as subsection (1) of section one of the Gold Standard Act, 1925, remains in force.

(2) Any person in the United Kingdom owning any gold coin or bullion to an amount exceeding ten thousand pounds in value shall', on being required so to do by notice in writing from the Bank, forthwith furnish to the Bank in writing particulars of the gold coin and bullion owned by that person, and shall, if so required by the Bank, sell to the Bank the whole or any part of the said coin or bullion, other than any part thereof which is bona fide held for immediate export or which is bona fide required for industrial purposes, on payment therefor by the Bank, in the case of coin, of the nominal value thereof, and in the case of bullion, at the rate fixed in section four of the Bank Charter Act, 1844.

12 Penalty for defacing bank notes

If any person prints, or stamps, or by any like means impresses, on any bank note any words, letters or figures, he shall, in respect of each offence, be liable on summary conviction to a penalty not exceeding one pound.

13 Short title, interpretation and repeal

(1) This Act may be cited as the Currency and Bank Notes Act, 1928.

(2) This Act shall come into operation on the appointed day, and the appointed day shall be such day as His Majesty may by Order in Council appoint, and different days may be appointed for different purposes and for different provisions of this Act.

(3) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—

• The expression " the Bank " means the Bank of England:

• The expression " issue department " means the issue department of the Bank:

• The expression " bank note " means a note of the Bank:

• The expression " coin " means coin which is current and legal tender in the United Kingdom :

• The expression " bullion " includes any coin which is not current and legal tender in the United Kingdom.

(4) The enactments set out in the Schedule to this Act are hereby repealed to the extent specified in the third column of that Schedule.