§ 7. Sir F. Medlicottasked the Minister of Labour what investigation is being made by or through his Department into the possibility of interchangeability between superannuation schemes, so that as far as practicable employees may carry with them into fresh employment the benefits of accrued superannuation contributions previously paid.
§ The Minister of Labour and National Service (Mr. lain Macleod)This matter is of general interest. Arrangements are being made to collect information about existing occupational pension schemes, including the number of workers they cover.
§ Sir F. MedlicottIs my right hon. Friend aware that a measure of interchangeability would be of great help to all kinds of workers, and would also help the community in making our total labour force much more mobile than at present?
§ Mr. MacleodI agree with my hon. Friend. The Government set a very good example in this direction, because there are schemes between the Civil Service and various public authorities—the National Health Service, the National 593 Coal Board and others—for such interchange without loss of rights on transfer, I should like to see such arrangements very much extended.
12. Mr. Leeasked the Minister of Labour whether he will discuss with the National Joint Advisory Council the possibility of adapting to the general industrial pension schemes the transfer principle agreed upon by the Engineers' Guild.
§ Mr. Iain MacleodI have seen brief statements in the Press about a pension scheme which has been drawn up by the Engineers' Guild for its professional members and I am making further inquiries about it.
Mr. LeeIs the right hon. Gentleman aware that this question has the same point as did Question No. 7, that is, the possibility of the transfer principle obtaining? Can he say whether any progress has been made through the nationalised industries or in any way to expedite the implementation of this principle? I myself raised the question in March, and I know that others have done so.
§ Mr. MacleodAs I tried to indicate in answer to a supplementary question by my hon. Friend the Member for Norfolk, Central (Sir F. Medlicott), we are doing all we can, particularly in the Government services and those services which are linked with Government services, to give a lead in this matter. The scheme to which the hon. Member particularly draws my attention seems to me, although I have seen only Press reports of it, to be an extremely interesting one, and one which I should like to inform myself about fully.