§ Mr. Anthony GrantI beg to move Amendment No. 15, in page 14, line 32, at end insert:
'(c) not to vary in such a manner as to increase the liabilities of the company any con- 388 tracts of insurance of a specified description, being contracts effected in the course of carrying on long-term business and in force when the requirement is imposed'.At the risk of tedious repetition I should say that this amendment also arises from a point raised in Committee by the hon. Member for Glasgow, Craigton (Mr. Millan). He questioned why, when a restriction was imposed on an insurance company under Clause 13, it should be permitted to vary long-term contracts although specifically prohibited from varying general insurance contracts.I explained that the need to vary long-term contracts inevitably arose more commonly than is the case with short-term ones, that the policy holder's rights to vary were not necessarily defined in the policy and that it would often be a hardship to him to be unable to obtain a variation such as the issue of a paid-up policy or the premature surrender of the policy for cash.
On the other hand, I accepted that variations of other kinds were possible and that these might in some circumstances increase the company's liabilities, contrary to the intention of the restriction. This possibility is dealt with in the amendment.
§ Amendment agreed to.