Mims Davies, MP for Eastleigh, has labelled the decision reached by the Government not to go ahead with a planned increase in probate fees as ‘absolutely right’.
Mims said:
“I feel that the Government has absolutely come to the right decision on this proposal. As a result of the early General Election, time would not have been sufficient to get these changes through Parliament with the scrutiny and diligence that they require and that the people that they would affect deserve.”
“It will now be up to the next Government to decide whether this proposal is worth bringing back to the next Parliament.”
Currently, should the estate need to go through probate following a death, a grant of probate is obtained, giving authority for that person (normally the executor of the will) to deal with the possessions, property and money of the deceased. This is accompanied with a flat rate fee of either £155 or £215 payable by all estates with a value exceeding £5000.
The proposals from the Ministry of Justice could have seen this system replaced with a sliding fee scale which would have been dependent upon the value of the estate.