The National Insurance (Industrial Injuries) Act, 1946 / with general introduction and annotations by N.P. Shannon and Douglas Potter.

  • United Kingdom
Date:
1946
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The National Insurance (Industrial Injuries) Act, 1946 / with general introduction and annotations by N.P. Shannon and Douglas Potter. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    95/252 (page 85)
    ACT, 1946. SECTION 19 it was proposed in the White Paper on Social Insurance, Part II, in September, 1944 (Cmd. 6551). (¢) Child of the deceased’s family.—As to this, see section 17, ante, where the whole question of who is a “‘ child’’ and what is a “ family ’’ is fully discussed. The “ following provisions ’’ referred to are in sections 21 and 24, post. Note the use of the ~ word “‘ allowance ”’ in distinction from ‘“‘ pension ’’ and “‘ gratuity’. In this Part of the Act it means something additional to the basic pension. (k) Age of fifty.—A person shall be deemed to be over or under any age mentioned if he or she has or has not attained that age. See section 88 (5) (a), post. As to ascertainment and proof of age, see section 63, post. The allowance referred to is payable under section 21, post. The period of entitlement to allowance under that section can begin after the death. As to the effect of age on contributions, see section 88 (5) (d), post. This age was proposed in Part II of the White Paper on National Insurance in September, 1944 (Cmd. 6551). The age in the Royal Warrant (Cmd. 6799), paragraph 24 (2), is 40 years for qualifying for the higher rates of pension unless the widow is incapable of self-support or is getting a child allowance cr an allowance out of public funds analagous toa pre-natal allowance or where the child dies under 18 or 16, according to the father’s rank. (1) Permanently incapable of self-support.—Section 35 (5) (b), post, provides that a person shall be deemed to be permanently incapable of self-support if, but only if, he is incapable of supporting himself by reason of physical or mental infirmity and is likely to remain so incapable for the remainder of his life. Cf. the phrase “ incapable of self-support ”’ used in section 18 (1) (b), ante, which is defined in section 35 (5) (a), post, in similar terms save that for “‘ the remainder of his life’’ is substituted ‘‘ a pro- ‘longed period’. In the Royal Warrant, Article 1 (7) (Cmd. 6799), the phrase “‘ incapable of self-support ”’ is given a rather wider definition. (m) Twenty shillings.—This rate has remained unchanged since it was pro-, posed in Part II of the White Paper on Social] Insurance (Cmd. 6551) in September, 1944. (n) Weekly rate not to exceed rate of payments for widow’s maintenance.— Section 39 of the Unemployment Insurance Act, 1935; 28 Halsbury’s Statutes 524 ; contained a provision relating to the cases when an insured contributor is to be deemed to be wholly or mainly maintaining another person. ‘The present proviso was in similar language but was amended on the Report Stage in consequence of the amendment to subsection (1). See note (d), supra. ‘The reference to the aggregate rate of payments is intended to cover cases where there are sums payable from more than one source, for example, under an agreement or a trust and under a court order. (0) Regulations as to higher rate for first thirteen weeks.—The weekly rate of 36s. for these weeks, which is to be the maximum rate prescribed by regulations, has not been changed since it was first provided for in the White Paper on Social Insurance, Part I, of September, 1944 (Cmd. 6551). This temporary higher rate is fixed in con- formity with the rate payable under the National Insurance Act, 1946, to a widow for the first thirteen weeks. See the Explanatory Memorandum to the Bill of June, 1945, “paragraph 19 (Cmd. 6651). The 36s. rate represents the 20s. minimum rate of benefit increase payable in all cases where the beneficiary is no longer capable of work, as in sections 13 and 15, ante, added to the 16s. minimum benefit payable in respect of adult dependants under section 18, ante. “ Regulations ”’, by section 88 (1), post, means regulations made by the Minister under this Act, that is under the section giving the power and under sections 86 and 87, post. Section 87 provides that they are to be laid before Parliament for forty days, during which either House may annul them. Before being laid before Parliament they have to be referred to the Industrial Injuries Advisory Council under section 61 (2), post. No regulations have been made under this section at the time of going to press. (p) Entitlement to payments from the deceased .—This subsection was added on the Report Stage, consequent on the amendments to subsections (1) and (3), and “for the purposes of this section ’’ refers to those subsections. This subsection defines “entitlement ’’. The payments must have actually have been provided by the deceased out of his own resources or procured by him to be paid by another ; for example, where the deceased had purchased an annuity payable to his wife by a Society or Assurance Company. ‘ Procured’’ means “‘ arranged for ’’, in the sense that the deceased must have done what was necessary to ensure that the payments would be made. (q) ‘‘ Entitled ’’.—Note that this definition is exhaustive, ‘‘means’”’ being the word used, not “‘includes’”’. Whether the steps taken to enforce the order, trust or agreement are reasonable is a question of fact in each case ; for example, taking out a summons or getting the help of the court missionary in respect of arrears due under a court order, writing to the husband to urge payment of arrears under an agreement or to the trustees in the case ofa trust. Legal proceedings, or even employing a solicitor to threaten them, would probably not be expected of a wife in the case of a trust or agreement unless she was eligible for a Poor Person’s certificate and knew of the Poor Persons’ procedure. See R.S.C., Order 16, rr. 22-31; Annual Practice, 1945, 287-298.