HC Deb 09 July 1947 vol 439 cc2391-2

(1) References in this section, in the last three preceding sections, and in the next succeeding section, to a retirement benefits scheme shall be construed in accordance with the following provisions, that is to say—

  1. (a)references to such a scheme shall, in relation to a deed, agreement, series of agreements, or other arrangements providing for retirement or other benefits for persons of two or more classes, be construed as references to so much thereof as relates to persons of a single class, and accordingly a deed, agreement, series of agreements or other arrangements so providing shall be treated for the purposes of those sections as constituting two or more retirement benefits schemes relating respectively to the different classes;
  2. (b) references to such a scheme include references to a deed, agreement, series of agreements, or other arrangements providing for retirement or other benefits for persons consisting of or including a director or employee, or directors or employees, of a body corporate (or, in a case falling within the preceding paragraph, to so much thereof as relates to a person or persons of any one class), notwithstanding that it or they relates or relate only to a small number of directors or employees, or to a single director or employee.

(2) For the purpose—

  1. (a) of determining, in the case of a retirement benefits scheme which was in operation before the sixth day of April, nineteen hundred and forty-four, whether the scheme falls within subsection (2) of the last but one preceding section as respects the nature of the main benefit afforded thereby and
  2. (b) of determining, in the case of a retirement benefits scheme submitted for the approval of the Commissioners of Inland Revenue, whether the scheme so falls and whether the conditions specified in subsection (1) of the last preceding section are satisfied, 2392 the scheme shall be considered in conjunction with any other retirement benefits scheme or schemes subsisting in connection with the body corporate and relating to persons of the class to which the scheme in question relates, and—
  1. (i) if the main benefit afforded by all of those schemes taken together is such as is mentioned in subsection (2) of the last but one preceding section, each of them shall be taken to fall within that subsection as respects the nature of the main benefit afforded thereby, and, if it is not, none of them shall be taken so to fall; and
  2. (ii) if the said conditions are satisfied in the case of all of them taken together, those conditions shall be taken to be satisfied in the case of each of them, and, if not, those conditions shall be taken to be satisfied in the case of none of them.

(3) The said Commissioners may, if they think fit,—

  1. (a) approve a part of a retirement benefits scheme; or
  2. (b) approve such a scheme notwithstanding that, having regard to another such scheme subsisting in connection with the body corporate, the scheme in question is to be treated by virtue of the last preceding subsection as not falling within subsection (2) of the last but one preceding section or as not satisfying the conditions aforesaid;
and where under this subsection the said Commissioners approve a part of a scheme, neither subsection (1) nor subsection (2) of the first of the sections of this- Act relating to retirement or other benefits shall apply so as to cause any sum to be deemed to be income of a director or employee by reference to the provision for him of benefits afforded by that part of the scheme or of any part of such benefits.— [Mr. Dalton.]

Brought up, read the First time and Second time, and added to the Bill.