36 TRANSACTIONS OF ROYAL SCOTTISH ARBORICULTURAI. SOCIETY. 



6. Death Duties on Woods. 



By RoHKKT Gai.ioway, S.S.C. 



Shortly after the passing of the Finance Act, 19x0, there was 

 published in the Transactions (pages 133-137 of Vol. xxiii.) a 

 note on the death duties as affecting woods, with special refer- 

 ence to the changes made by that Act. The chief feature of the 

 Act as regards woods was the establishment of the principle 

 that the duties on them were not payable until the trees were 

 cut down and converted into cash. This was certainly a great 

 concession, but accompanying it there was the obligation to 

 aggregate the value of the woods with the deceased's other 

 estate, in order to ascertain the total value of the estate and the 

 rate of duty payable. Aggregation had the effect, in many cases, 

 of raising the rate of duty i per cent, or perhaps 2 per cent, or 

 more according to the value of the woods. This increased rate 

 was at once levied on the value of the other estate (without the 

 woods), and 'the additional percentage thus really represented a 

 duty immediately payable in respect of the woods. The trees 

 when subsequently cut down also paid duty at the same 

 increased rate as the other estate. Various other adverse 

 criticisms were directed against the Act as affecting woods, and 

 there gradually grew up a strong feeling of disappointment, 

 which, in some cases, was so great as to cause proprietors who 

 were formerly keen planters to suspend forestry operations on 

 their estates, with the exception perhaps of the felling and con- 

 verting into cash of such of their woods as were suitable for this 

 purpose. Last year the Chancellor of the Exchequer promised 

 to give the subject further consideration, and this year he 

 accepted an amendment which was duly embodied in the 

 Finance Act, 191 2, as Section 9, and is as follows : — 



"Where an estate, in respect of which Estate Duty is 

 payable on the death of a person dying on or after the 

 thirtieth day of April, nineteen hundred and nine, comprises 

 land on which timber, trees, wood, or underwood are 

 growing, the value of such timber, trees, wood, or under- 

 wood shall not be taken into account in estimating the 

 principal value of the estate or .the rate of Estate Duty, 

 and Estate Duty shall not be payable thereon, but shall, 

 at the rate due to the principal value of the estate be 



