HL Deb 21 November 1991 vol 532 cc1017-8
The Lord Chancellor (Lord Mackay of Clashfern)

My Lords, I beg to move that this Bill be now read a second time.

This is the first of three Bills in my name on the Order Paper. If I may, I shall speak to all three together in moving the first and then move the other two formally.

These Bills between them represent the first consolidation for many years of all the Northern Ireland statute law on social security. They are similar in many respects to the social security consolidation Bills for the rest of the United Kingdom that came before your Lordships on Second Reading earlier this week. I should like to take this opportunity of expressing my appreciation to the Northern Ireland draftsman for his outstanding work in producing this present consolidation.

The Social Security Administration (Northern Ireland) Bill covers all aspects of the management of the social security system and deals with matters such as the payment of benefits, adjudication, enforcement and uprating.

The Social Security Contributions and Benefits (Northern Ireland) Bill is concerned with the contributions on which certain social security benefits depend, and with the various benefits themselves, both those within the contributory system and those outside it.

The Social Security (Consequential Provisions) (Northern Ireland) Bill contains repeals and consequential and transitional provisions arising out of the other two Bills.

These Bills contain a number of corrections and minor improvements to the existing law which are needed in order to facilitate this consolidation. These are contained in a Memorandum which I laid before Parliament earlier this month pursuant to the Consolidation of Enactments (Procedure) Act 1949. This Memorandum, which will be considered by the Joint Committee, is similar in purpose to the reports of the Law Commissions, which often recommend minor amendments to the existing law in order to achieve a satisfactory consolidation. However, since the present consolidation deals with matters that are "transferred" for the purposes of the Northern Ireland Constitution Act 1973, the minor improvements have to be dealt with by Memorandum under the 1949 Act rather than be included in a Law Commission report.

I beg to move that the first of the three Bills be now read a second time.

Moved, That the Bill be now read a second time —(The Lord Chancellor.)

Lord Prys-Davies

My Lords, from these Benches I should like to thank the noble and learned Lord the Lord Chancellor for having explained the purpose of the Bill. We too congratulate the Northern Ireland draftsman on the quality of his work.

The Lord Chancellor

My Lords, I am grateful to the noble Lord for his observations.

On Question, Bill read a second time, and referred to the Joint Committee on Consolidation Bills.