Borrowing (Control and Guarantees) Act 1946

The Borrowing (Control and Guarantees) Act 1946 (9 & 10 Geo. 6. c. 58) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that allowed HM Treasury to directly regulate borrowing within England and Wales and Scotland.

Borrowing (Control and Guarantees) Act 1946

Act of Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Long title	An Act to provide for the regulation of the borrowing and raising of money, the issue of securities, and the circulation of offers of securities for subscription, sale or exchange, to enable the Treasury to guarantee loans in certain circumstances, and for purposes connected with the matters aforesaid.
Citation	9 & 10 Geo. 6. c. 58
Territorial extent	England and Wales, Scotland
Dates
Royal assent	12 July 1946
Other legislation
Repealed by	Government Trading Act 1990
Status: Repealed
Text of statute as originally enacted
Text of the Borrowing (Control and Guarantees) Act 1946 as in force today (including any amendments) within the United Kingdom, from legislation.gov.uk.

Act

The Act was given the royal assent on 12 July 1946.^[1] It made it necessary for all borrowing and raising of capital to be passed through HM Treasury, something first introduced by the Defence (Finance) Regulations. Section 1 of the Act allowed the Treasury to make orders regulating a company incorporated in Britain, the circulation of any offer of foreign securities in Britain, and the borrowing of more than £10,000 in a twelve-month period by any person.^[2] Section 2 allowed the Treasury to provide up to £50,000,000 each financial year to aid in the reconstruction of industry, countering the first section (which restricted private enterprise) by allowing the Treasury to support it directly.^[3]

The Radcliffe Committee found that "it was impossible to resist the broad conclusion that the [Act] had no significant impact on the pressure of total demand",^[4] and it was repealed by the Government Trading Act 1990.^[5]