ACCIDENT INSURANCE.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVIII, 13 June 1924, Page 5

ACCIDENT INSURANCE.

QUESTION OF STATE MONOPOLY

STATEMENT BY THE MINISTER

(By Telegraph—Special to Star.) WELLINGTON, June 12. Much interest has been aroused by the report that the Workers’ Compensation Commission or Committee of Enquiry is going to discuss the advisability of the State taking over accident insurance as a monopoly. The Minister of Labour (Mr Anderson) states that the question has never been considered by Cabinet. He as Minister of Labour has been studying the question of compensation for workers for some months, and following the course he had pursued in previous labour legislation dealing with scaffolding and apprentices he had consulted the interests involved, as compensation for accidents to workers affected practically everyone in the community, and he had come to the conclusion that a public investigation would be advisable before legislation was drafted for submission to Parliament. This investigation would be made in due course. In the meantime a great deal of information had been collected by the Labour Department on the question, and this would be of much value in framing legislation, but the question of whether aecident insurance should be a State monopoly had not been submitted to or discussed by Cabinet, and therefore any statement or inference that the Government had decided to make it the subject for enquiry or a policy matter was unfounded.

The secretary of the Employers’ Federation (Mr Bishop) states that he has not discussed the Question with the Minister, Public Trustee (Mr MacDonald), or Mr E. J. Howard, M.P Un one occasion recently,” he said, I was invited by the Hon. the Minister, L „ )our to meet Mr MacDonald and Mr Howard ip the Minister’s office to discuss a proposal which the Minister had under consideration that either a Koyal Commission or Committee of Enquiry should be set up to investigate the whole question of workers’ compensation with a view' to . assisting the Government in the preparation of an amendment to the present law. No definite arrangement was. come to on. this occasion, but my impression was that as a result of our conversation the Minister would further consider the matter of setting up a Royal Commission.-