§ Order of the Day for the House to be put into Committee read.
§ Moved, That the House do now resolve itself into Committee.—(The Duke of Devonshire.)
150§ On Question, Motion agreed to.
§ House in Committee accordingly:
§ [The EARL OF ONSLOW in the Chair.]
§ Clause 1 agreed to.
§ Clause 2:
§ Provision as to superannuation rights of contributory employees.
§ 2.—(1) Any contributory employee who received in respect of work in connection with the preparation of a register of electors or juror's book in the year nineteen hundred and thirty-nine remuneration, otherwise than as part of an inclusive salary continuing to be received by him, shall be entitled to contribute a sum in respect of that remuneration to the appropriate superannuation fund in respect of any year, whether before or after the passing of this Act, in which a register of electors or juror's book, as the case may be, is not prepared by reason of the Local Elections and Register of Electors (Temporary Provisions) Act, 1939, being in force; and for the purpose of computing in accordance with the provisions of Section eight of the Local Government Superannuation Act, 1937, the average remuneration of any contributory employee he shall be deemed to have received in respect of service rendered in any year in respect of which such contributions were made by him the remuneration by reference to which the contributions were calculated.
§ (2) In this section the expressions "contributory employee" and "appropriate superannuation fund" have the same meaning as in the Local Government Superannuation Act, 1937.
§ THE PARLIAMENTARY UNDERSECRETARY OF STATE FOR INDIA AND BURMA (THE DUKE OF DEVONSHIRE) moved, in subsection (1), to leave out "who received in respect of work" and insert "or local Act contributor who received in respect of work done by him in the standard year as returning officer at a local election other than an election to fill a casual vacancy, or". The noble Duke said: This is the only Amendment of substance to be made in the Bill. The other Amendments on the Paper are verbal and largely consequential. This Amendment is designed to protect the superannuation position of employees of local authorities who suffer loss of election fees in respect of local elections as well as that of employees who suffer because the register of electors and the juror's book are not prepared. The Bill as introduced in the House of Commons provided only for meeting superannuation losses resulting from discontinuing work on the register and juror's book, but representations have been made that the 151 superannuation losses which may result from the suspension of local elections should also be met. The number of employees involved is comparatively small but there seems to be no reason of principle why they should not be included in the Bill. The Amendment is also designed to extend the protection, both with regard to loss from discontinuance of work on the register of electors and juror's book and with regard to loss from the suspension of local elections, to contributors to superannuation funds maintained under local Acts, as well as the funds maintained under the Local Government Superannuation Act, 1937. A few authorities, notably the metropolitan boroughs, or some of them, maintain their local Act funds, and on this point again representations have been received. I beg to move.
§
Amendment moved—
Page 1, line 11, leave out from ("employee") to ("in") in line 12 and insert ("or local Act contributor who received in respect of work done by him in the standard year as returning officer at a local election other than an election to fill a casual vacancy, or").—(The Duke of Devonshire.)
§ On Question, Amendment agreed to.
§ THE DUKE OF DEVONSHIREThe next Amendment is purely a matter of drafting.
§
Amendment moved—
Page 1, line 13, leave out from ("book") to ("remuneration") in line 14.—(The Duke of Devonshire.)
§ On Question, Amendment agreed to.
§ THE DUKE OF DEVONSHIREThe next Amendment is also a matter of drafting, extending to the loss of returning officers' fees for local elections the protection given by the clause.
§
Amendment moved—
Page 1, line 18, leave out from ("which") to ("of") in line 19, and insert ("by reason only").—(The Duke of Devonshire.)
§ On Question, Amendment agreed to.
§ THE DUKE OF DEVONSHIREThe next Amendment is consequential.
§
Amendment moved—
Page 1, line 21, after ("force") insert ("he is not required to do such work").—(The Duke of Devonshire.)
§ On Question, Amendment agreed to. i
152§ THE DUKE OF DEVONSHIREThe next Amendment is purely a matter of drafting.
§
Amendment moved—
Page 2, line 2, after ("employee") insert ("or of calculating the superannuation allowance of any local Act contributor under a local Act scheme ").—(The Duke of Devonshire.)
§ On Question, Amendment agreed to.
§ THE DUKE OF DEVONSHIREThe next Amendment is consequential on the last.
§
Amendment moved—
Page 2, line 7, leave out line 7 and insert ("'local Act contributor,' 'local Act scheme' and appropriate superannuation fund' have the same meanings respectively").—The Duke of Devonshire.)
§ On Question, Amendment agreed to.
§ THE DUKE OF DEVONSHIREThe next again is a drafting Amendment.
§
Amendment moved—
Page 2, line 8, at end insert ("except that in relation to a local Act contributor the last mentioned expression means the superannuation fund in the benefits of which he is entitled to participate; and the expression standard year means in relation to work done by any person as returning officer at a local election, the last year before the year nineteen hundred and forty in which such work was done by him, and, in relation to work done by any person in connection with the preparation of a register of electors or juror's book, the year nineteen hundred and thirty-nine.")—(The Duke of Devonshire.)
§ On Question, Amendment agreed to.
§ Clause 2, as amended, agreed to.
§ Clause 3 agreed to.
§ Schedule agreed to.
§
Title:
A Bill to continue in force the Local Elections and Register of Electors (Temporary Provisions) Act, 1939, with certain amendments, and to make provision for safeguarding the rights of contributory employees under the Local Government Superannuation Act, 1937, and the Local Government Superannuation (Scotland) Act, 1937, in respect of remuneration lost in consequence of the first-mentioned Act.
§ THE DUKE OF DEVONSHIREThe Amendment which I have to move to the Title is consequential.
§
Amendment moved—
In the title, leave out ("under") and insert ("and local Act contributors as defined by").—(The Duke of Devonshire.)
§ On Question, Amendment agreed to.
153§ Title, as amended, agreed to.
§ Then, Standing Order No. XXXIX having been dispensed with, Amendments reported, Bill read 3a, with the Amendments, and passed, and returned to the Commons.