NATIONAL INSURANCE (INDUSTRIAL INJURIES) (COLLIERY WORKERS SUPPLEMENTARY SCHEME) AMENDMENT ORDER, 1965 (Hansard, 18 March 1965)

§ LORD BOWLES
My Lords, this draft Order, increasing certain benefits and contributions under the Colliery Workers Supplementary Scheme, follows on from the higher rates of industrial injuries benefit enacted in the National Insurance Act, 1964. Under Section 83 of the Industrial Injuries Act, any group of employers and employees can apply to the Minister of Pensions and National Insurance to set up a supplementary scheme of benefits on top of those provided by the Industrial Injuries Act. Under this provision, the supplementary scheme can be given statutory cover, and the machinery of the Ministry of Pensions and National Insurance can be used in administering and paying out benefits.
The only scheme made under the Act is that for colliery workers, which was established in 1948. It is run by a National Committee representing the National Coal Board and the mineworkers unions. Under the scheme, the rates of supplement payable to injured workmen are linked with the rates of industrial injuries benefit themselves, so that the supplements will go up as a result of the higher State benefits under the 1964 Act. An amending Order is, however, needed to increase the supplementary benefits for widows and the contributions under the scheme; the draft Order now before the House would make these changes which have been asked for by the National Committee of the scheme, and is similar to amending Orders which have been brought 423 forward after previous Acts increasing industrial injuries benefits—for example, in 1961 and 1963.
Under the draft Order, the rates of supplements to widows' benefits will go up, in the same proportion as the increases in supplements for injured workmen, from the end of March when the industrial injuries benefits for widows are increased. These supplements are paid to rather more than 7,000 widows of colliery workers who died as a result of an industrial accident or industrial disease. The vast majority of the supplements are payable at the rate of 41s. a week, which will be increased under the Order to 47s. 6d. a week.
The draft Order will also increase the contributions under the scheme. These are at present 5½d. a week for men (with lower rates for women and juveniles), with the National Coal Board paying 5½d. per ton of deep-mined coal. Under the Order these contributions would become 6¼d. a side. The Government Actuary, who advises the National Committee on the scheme and the Minister of Pensions and National Insurance on its finances, has advised that this new rate of contributions should be sufficient to maintain the finances of the scheme in proper balance. I should emphasise that no part of the cost of the supplementary scheme falls on the Exchequer; the Ministry of Pensions and National Insurance, who undertake part of the administrative arrangements for the scheme in conjunction with their work on industrial injuries benefits, are reimbursed by the scheme for their administration costs.
The opportunity is also taken to propose two technical changes in the scheme. One is to bring its accounting periods into line with the new accounting periods of the National Coal Board; the other will enable the scheme, which already has power to invest in leasehold property, to issue bonds for the due performance of obligations entered into under such leases. I beg to move that the draft Order be approved.

§ LORD DRUMALBYN
My Lords, on behalf of my noble friends I should like 424 to thank the noble Lord for his explanation of this scheme. May I ask him just one question? The contributions are calculated on a different basis, I understand, according to the Explanatory Memorandum, for the employees and for the employers, the employees' contribution being per head and that of the employers being calculated per ton of deep-mined coal. I would ask the noble Lord whether the resulting effect is that the increase in payments, in revenue, and also, indeed, the cost of the scheme, is shared approximately equally between the Coal Board and the colliery workers.

§ LORD BOWLES
No, my Lords. The position is that originally about one-fifth was paid by the colliers and the other four-fifths by the National Coal Board. The rate of contribution at the moment, as the noble Lord has said, is 5½d. each side; and it is going up to 61¼. With the increased efficiency of the coal industry—because more coal is being produced by fewer miners, and more machinery is being used—about 88 per cent. (I have not the exact figures with me at the moment) of that cost will be borne by the National Coal Board and the other private colliery owners, and about 12 per cent. will be paid by the colliers.

§ LORD DRUMALBYN
My Lords, I am obliged to the noble Lord for that explanation.