HC Deb 25 November 1914 vol 68 cc1281-3

  1. (1) The Army Council, subject to the consent of the Treasury, shall have power to frame a scheme as to pensions and grants 1282 and other allowances in the nature thereof, to be paid to persons (not being officers or soldiers of any of His Majesty's land forces) in respect of disablement suffered whilst employed on shore out of the United Kingdom by or under the Army Council in connection with warlike operations in which His Majesty is engaged, and, in the case of their death, to their widows or other dependants.
  2. (2) A scheme shall specify the persons to whom the scheme applies and the conditions under which it becomes applicable, and may include persons not in the direct employment of the Army Council.
  3. (3) A person to whom any such scheme applies shall not, nor, in the case of his death, shall his widow or other dependants or his personal representatives, in respect of any disablement suffered by him whilst the scheme so applies to him, be entitled to any pensions or other benefits under any Order in Council or any warrant or regulations relating to officers and men in the military service of the Crown, or to any gratuity or any superannuation or other allowance under the Superannuation Acts, 1834 to 1914, or to any compensation or damages at common law or under any other statute, except so far as the scheme otherwise provides.
  4. (4) All pensions grants and other allowances under this Act shall be paid out of moneys provided by Parliament.
  5. (5) A scheme under this Act may provide that the scheme shall have effect as from the third day of August nineteen hundred and fourteen, and any such scheme may be revoked or varied by a subsequent scheme.
  6. (6) For the purposes of this section, "disablement" means disablement by personal injury or by sickness specifically attributable to the nature or conditions of the employment.

Dr. MACNAMARA

I have a series of Amendments which I hope the Committee will agree to. The cases of soldiers and sailors who suffer injuries from home are covered by the Army and Navy pension regulations, and the cases of workmen employed in similar circumstances are covered by the Workmen's Compensation Act. The only case that is not covered is that of the workman who may be employed under contract afloat or on shore, and the purpose of the Bill is to cover that case. The Bill as drafted only applied to Army men, and the Amendments seek to give to the Admiralty the same power.

Amendments made: In Sub-section (1), after the word "the" ["the Army Council"], insert the words "Admiralty and."

Leave out the words "a scheme," and insert instead thereof the word "schemes."

Leave out the word "soldiers" ["soldiers of any"], and insert instead thereof the word "men."

Leave out the word "land" ["land forces"].

After the word "the" ["the Army Council"], insert the words "Admiralty and."

In Sub-section (2), after the word "the" ["the Army Council"], insert the words "Admiralty or."

In Sub-section (3), after the word "the" ["the military service"], insert the words "naval or."

After Clause 1, the following