NATIONAL HEALTH SERVICE (SUPERANNUATION) (Hansard, 17 July 1961)

§ The Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Health (Miss Edith Pitt)
I beg to move, That the National Health Service (Superannuation) Regulations, 1961, a draft of which was laid before this House on 5th July, be approved. These Regulations provide for the superannuation of 350,000 persons engaged in the National Health Service in England and Wales. They replace the existing Regulations on the subject, the principal ones of these being the National Health Service (Superannuation) Regulations, 1955. In the main, the new Regulations are consolidating, but they include some Amendments to which, perhaps, I should draw attention.
The main changes which have been made to the existing Regulations are set out in the Explanatory Note, on pages 118 and 119 of the new Regulations. But four changes, I think, might be brought to the attention of hon. Members. In the definition of an approved course of study or training in Regulation 2 and elsewhere in other Regulations the Minister takes power to extend at his discretion the periods of time during which various applications and payments must be made by those concerned.
Such a discretion has already been exercised from time to time where applications and payments were late through no fault of the person concerned, but up to the present any concessions have been extra-statutory. The new provisions will make for greater ease and flexibility in the administration of these complicated Regulations.
Secondly, Regulation 10, about injury allowances, has been redrafted to remove anomalies which have arisen in its operation and to ensure that the wording fits the intentions. The principle is retained that injury allowance may be paid to an officer who sustains injury or contracts disease arising out of his employment, but where, because of the receipt of substantial benefits from the National Insurance (Industrial Injuries) Act of 1946, or, for other reasons, no injury allowance is awarded and he is 1015 not entitled to any other benefit under the superannuation Regulations an amendment to Regulation 35 will enable contributions to be returned to him.
Thirdly, in Regulations 16, 17, 19 and 76 there are new provisions extending still further the widespread interchange arrangements that already exist between the National Health Service Superannuation Scheme and other schemes.
The final matter to which I should draw attention is Regulation 18, which is new. As will be seen from the Explanatory Note, this provides that an employee whose remuneration is suspended owing to illness or injury will cease to be an officer within the meaning of the Regulations from the date of suspension. On the other hand, in this case, or where the illness or injury has resulted in the termination of the person's employment in which he was subject to the Regulations, a period of incapacity of up to two years or longer, at the Minister's discretion, will in future be added to the one year already allowed before a disqualifying break in service occurs.
This provision will meet a point to which the nursing profession, in particular, has attached importance and in which my hon. Friend the Member for Tynemouth (Dame Irene Ward) has taken an interest. I am sure sate will be particularly happy that it has been included.

§ Dame Irene Ward (Tynemouth)
Hear, hear.

§ Miss Pitt
There have been very detailed consultations between the Department and more than a score of bodies representing staff and professional interests, including the Royal College of Nursing, the Royal College of Midwives, the British Medical Association, the British Dental Association and the Joint Trade Union Committee for the National Health Service. One or two of the bodies consulted have remained of different opinion on one or two of the provisions, but, broadly speaking, I can say that they are acceptable.
I shall not trouble the House with the details of this very large number of Regulations, but I shall be glad to try to answer any points which hon. Members have in mind.

§ Mr. Kenneth Robinson (St. Pancras, North)
I am sure that the House will be grateful to the hon. Lady the Parliamentary Secretary for her explanation of these Regulations. We on this side of the House have no objection to the Regulations, except perhaps on the ground of their bulk and complexity, but I suppose that is inevitable when one is dealing with a service which employs not only so many people but also so many different types and grades of staff, from copy typists to consultant surgeons.
We are grateful to know that there has been full consultation and, with very minor exceptions, general agreement with the professional associations and trade unions concerned. We are very happy that the House should approve these Regulations.

§ The Under-Secretary of State for Scotland (Mr. T. G. D. Galbraith)
I beg to move, That the National Health Service (Superannuation) (Scotland) Regulations, 1961, a draft of which was laid before this House on 5th July, be approved. The purpose of the Regulations is to apply to the National Health Service in Scotland the arrangements for superannuation which have just been approved by the House for the Health Service in England and Wales.
The two sets of Regulations do not differ in any material respect. The present Regulations which are in force are the principal Regulations which were made in 1955, together with the amending Regulations which were made at this time last year. The draft Regulations at present before the House consolidate these Regulations and the opportunity has also been taken to introduce a number of Amendments. The more important of these Amendments, which, incidentally, will have little or no effect on the finances of the scheme, are described in the Explanatory Note of the draft Regulations.
1017 My hon. Friend the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Health, when moving the affirmative Resolution on the Regulations for England and Wales, referred to some of the more important amendments, including the extension of the already wide interchange arrangements between the Health Service and other schemes and also the new procedure in cases of prolonged sick leave. What my hon. Friend said with regard to England and Wales applies also to Scotland.
Apart from these amendments described in the Explanatory Note, the other changes introduced are rather of a tidying-up nature. They take account of a number of minor points of drafting and the like which have arisen during the working of the scheme in the past few years.
My hon. Friend the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Health referred to the consultation with the various staff interests which took place on the Regulations for England and Wales. Full consultation also took place on the Scottish Regulations. The House may be interested to know that details of the proposed amendments along with an explanation of the need for them were given to the interested bodies, which numbered about 20, early in January.
In the light of the comments received, the present Regulations were produced in consolidated form and the amendments inserted. Copies of this consolidation, with the Amendments clearly shown, together with a table of comparison giving the reasons for the various changes, were sent at the beginning of June to the bodies which had previously been consulted. Comments were invited by the end of June. I am glad to be able to tell the House that none was received.
I think that I can say, therefore, that the amendments proposed have, on the whole, been welcomed. Accordingly, I invite the House to agree to the proposed Regulations.

§ Miss Margaret Herbison (Lanarkshire, North)
I am grateful, as, I am sure, other Scottish Members present are grateful, to the Minister for the explanation that he has given. These Regulations run to very many pages, and it is very 1018 difficult for a lay person to follow every one of them and keep referring back to the previous Regulations which are consolidated.
One change has puzzled me considerably. If someone were looking after the interests of an officer and trying to find what were the officer's rights, he might he in great difficulty. I think that this is something to which the hon. Gentleman should give his attention.
I find in the Explanatory Note one of the main changes referred to in paragraph (c), namely, where, in calculating an injury allowance, no payment is found to be due, contributions are to be returnable I am then referred to Regulations 12 and 36 (1,d) as the relevant Regulations giving authority for the return of contributions.
I went carefully through the Explanatory Note to find what was new and what was consolidation. I read Regulation 12. I read Regulation 36 (1, d). Regulation 12 provides that the Secretary of State may not pay an injury allowance greater than would otherwise be paid, and Regulation 36 (1,d) provides that For the purposes of this regulation a person shall not be regarded as entitled to an injury allowance under these regulations if by reason of the provisions of paragraph (4) of regulation 12 no sum is for the time being receivable by him on account thereof. In those two Regulations to which our attention is drawn far an explanation, no explanation is given. I have read it very carefully, but I may have misunderstood. If it is a fault in the Explanatory Note, it ought to be corrected so that any person acting on behalf of an officer will know just where to turn to ascertain what his rights are. Can the Under-Secretary of State deal with the point now, or would he prefer to give his attention to it later?

§ Mr. Galbraith
On a complicated matter like this, I should prefer to accept the hon. Lady's invitation to consider the matter and communicate with her in due course.