NATIONAL INSURANCE SCHEME.

Press, Volume LXVII, Issue 14072, 17 June 1911, Page 3

NATIONAL INSURANCE SCHEME.

CHANCELLOR'S STATEMENTPAYMENTS AND BENEFITS. A SYMPATHLfIC RECEPTION. (FROM OTTIt OWN COnHESPONTJEXT.) LONDON, May 5. Tho great interest taken in the Invalidity and Unemployment Insurance Bill of tho Government was seen last night by the largo attendance in the House of Commons when Mr Lloyd Gcorgo expounded the outlines of his measure. For some weeks the Chancellor has been out of the. political arena. During the hitter debates on the Veto Bill ho has been absent from tho House, nursing his throat, and it seemed strange to see him now introducing a huge non-pnrtv humanitarian measure, and appealing to the sympathy of all sections of the House. Without doubt it is a stupendous measure which will vitally affect the conditions of labour in England. The Bill is divided into two parts, dealing respectively with insurance ajriinst sickness and insurance against unemployment. The money .to be raised in'the first year (beginning May, 1912), is to be £24,500,000, of which the Stato contributes £2.500.000. Tho number of persons to bo insured against sickness is 14.700,000. The persons to benefit are all workers with incomes under tho limit of income-tax taxation (£160.) The workers, tho employers, and the State, contribute in the following proportion : —Worker 4d per week (women (id); employers 3d; tho Stato 2d Free doctors and freo drups aro to be allowed to the insured. An allowance of 80s will bo paid in each case of maternity provided the mother does not return to work within four weeks. £15,0u0,000 is to be spent on building sanatoria for consumption. Tho number of men to bo insured against unemployment is 2,400,000. 'lho Bill comes into force in May, 1912. The cost to tho workers at the outset will be eleven millions, whilo nine millions will be contributed by the employers. Tho State contributions will gradually riso till in 1915-1916 they reach £4,563,000. Tho second yart of the Bill deals with insurance against unemployment. It only to workers in tho engineer, ing and building trades. Tho cost of this "art will be £2.750,000. of which £1,100,000 will bo provided by the workers. £900,000 by tho employers, and £750.000 by tho State. THE CHANCELLOR'S SPEECH. Mr Lloyd Georgo had a very attentive audience. After showing that those who wero most, iv need of iusuranco "formed tho bulk of tho uninsured" ho proceeded to explain his scheme for compulsory insurance against sickness. Special provision would bo raado for soldiers and sailors who left tho services broken with illhealth, and more, generous provision would bo made for teachers. Ho stated that the workers, with vory few exceptions, would come within tbo scope of tho BUI. ■'\Vo deduct fourponci! from a man's wages," he said, "that is to say, two pints of 'the cheapest beer or ono ounco of tobacco." Ho explained that tho fourpence would bo reduced in the case of a man earning 15s a week or less. "A man who earns two shillings and sixpence n. day shall pay threepence, two shillings a day or less twopence, and the man who is earning ono shilling and sixpence a day shall only pay a t>enny a week." This would bavo to be compensated by oxtra payments from tho employers who nrpfited by cheap labour. Somo interesting explanations with regard to elderly men followed. ■ Men over fifty at the commencement ..of tho scheme: would receive lower benefits. ''t\ T e propose to admit everyone* up to sixty-five to insurance so long as this is done within twelvo months after tho passing of the Act. After tho twelve months they will come in paying the rate proper to their age or take reduced benefits." A person who foil out of work would _be allowed threo weeks grace if ho failed in his payments. c 'lt will count as if ho had paidP" asked Mr. Bnlfour. "Yes. that is tho better way of putting it," replied the Chancellor. MATERNITY PROPOSALS. Coming to the benefits to bo received, tho Chancellor observed:—"A pood deal of infantile mortality arises from neglect and carelessness, but of toner from poverty among women of the working classes. Wo are adopting the maternity benefit of tho Hearts of Oak Society. We proposo that there shall ho a 30s l>enefit in theso cases, which will cover doctoring and nursing, but only conditional upon those who aro women workers not returning to work for four weeks. In mills you often have cases of women working up to the last moment, and then returning in a comparatively few days. They are compelled to return in order to maintain their children, and I think wo ought, in tho interests of humanity, to mako somo provision to prevent that occurring." CRUSADE AGAINST CONSUMPTION. Aftor this, the interesting announcement was made that a Government campaign against consumption was to bo instituted. A capital sum of ono and a half million sterling was to be set aside for enabling local authorities to bu;ld sanatoria through the country, and there wa»s to be a million a year allotted for their maintenance. A ri,pp!o of sympathy ran over the House as Mr Lloyd Georgo described the devastating effects of the consumption scourge among the people. "There aro 75.000 deaths a year in Groat Britain and Ireland. Doctors think they can crush this disease out. They can only do it with help. I propeso to ask tho Houso to give that help." PENSIONS AT SIXTY-FIVE. Next followed an interesting glanco into tho future. A surplus of £'1,700,000 would, at the end of 15J years, when initial charges' had been cleared off, amount to £7,000,000."We Khali tliQn "be within sight of pensions at sixty-five; or, as an alternative (which I should prefer) of proposing that a man who does not take his pension at eixty-five, but goes on working, shall increase his pension in later yeax3 by every additional year ho goes on working." Two or three sentences sufficed to describe the practical methods of collecting the insurance contributions. "Wo shall collect our funds by means of stamps. A card is given to tho workman. Hβ takes it to his employer at the end of tho week. Tho employer puts on liis own threepenny stamp, and the man's fourpenny stamp, deducting tho money from tho wages. Tho card is in possession of the man. Hβ takes it to tho post-office, and it is sent along to tho central office." There, was much cheering from -ill parts of the Houso as Mr Lloyd George sat down. Mr Austen Chambe.rlain expressed his sympathy with the objects of the measure, and Mr Redmond and Mr Ramsay Macdonald gave it their blessing. At 11 p.m., amid general chocrs,"~the Chancellor formally brought in tho Bill. PRESS COMMENTS. Roughly speakings the Bill commends iteolf to "tho newspaper Press of the country. While the Liberal organs :>re loud in their praise, tho Unionist journals, on tho whole, aro not disposed to criticise. The following are somo of the leading Conservative opinions: — "The Times": No one will question its desirability j but of its feasibility