§
Provision amended and subject Matter thereof
§ Amendment
§ Section 1 (industrial assurance business)
§
After subsection (1), there shall be inserted the following subsection—
'(1A) In this Act "industrial assurance company" means a body corporate which carries on industrial assurance business and "collecting society" means a society registered under the Friendly Societies Act 1896 which carries on such business, being a friendly society within the meaning of that Act'.
§
Provision amended and subject Matter thereof
§ Amendment
§ Section 7 (deposits by collecting societies)
§
In subsection (1), for the words from the beginning to the end of paragraph (b), there shall be substituted the following words:—
'Every collecting society shall be under obligation to deposit with the Accountant General of the Supreme Court the sum of £20,000 and to keep that sum so deposited while it carries on industrial assurance business, and the following provisions shall have effect with respect to deposits under this section, namely,—
§ The noble Lord said: This amended Part II of Schedule 4 preserves, with appropriate revision, the definition of "industrial assurance company" and "collecting society" in Section 1 of the Industrial Assurance Act 1923. The provision in Section 1(1)of the 1923 Act which now defines those terms is also the provision which restricts the persons who may carry on industrial assurance. That provision is being repealed (by Schedule 6, Part I) consequently on the embodying of the relevant restriction in Clause 44 and a new provision is therefore needed in Section 1 of the 1923 Act preserving the definitions. At the same time the definition of "industrial assurance company" is widened so as to tally with the class of companies in the new subsection (1A) of Clause 44 which may be authorised to do industrial assurance business.
2183§ The provision amending Section 7 of the 1923 Act is not a new provision. It is taken up from Part II of Schedule 4 to the Bill as presented. The reason for amending Section 7 is that this section defines the obligation of collecting societies to make deposits by reference to provisions of the Insurance Companies Act 1958 which are being repealed. The Amendment makes Section 7 independent of the repealed enactments, and preserves the present obligations of collecting societies in the matter of deposits and the Commissioner's power to make regulations respecting the varying or withdrawal of those deposits. I beg to move.
§ Amendment moved—
§ Page 92, leave out lines 2 to 26 and insert the said new Part II.—(Lord Winterbottom.)
§ On Question, Amendment agreed to.
§ Fourth Schedule, as amended, agreed to.
§ Fifth Schedule [Spent or obsolete enactments ceasing to have effect]:
§ THE LORD CHANCELLORI beg to move this Amendment standing in the name of my noble friend Lord Winter-bottom. The Amendment repeals various spent or obsolete provisions in the Industrial Assurance Act 1923. The reason for the reference to "with or without hard labour" is very obvious, on the face of it. If noble Lords want to know why any other particular section is spent, I will do my best to explain it.
§ Amendment moved—
§ Page 92 line 30, at end insert—
| ("13 & 14 Geo. 5. c. 8. | The Industrial Assurance Act 1923. | Section 4(4). In section 7, in sub-section (1), in paragraph (d), the words from the beginning to 'Act' and in paragraph (e) the words after the passing of this Act', and subsection (4). |
| In section 18, in subsection (1), the words ' made as at the thirty-first day of December, nineteen hundred and twenty-four, or any later date' and the proviso to paragraph (d), subsection (2), and in subsection (3) the words 'whether made before or after the passing of this Act' and the proviso. |
| In section 24(3), the words 'after the expiration of five years from the passing of this Act'. | ||
| Section 24(5). | ||
| Section 30. | ||
| In section 40, the words with or without hard labour'.") | ||
| —(The Lord Chancellor.) |
§ On Question, Amendment agreed to.
§ THE LORD CHANCELLORI beg to move the next Amendment standing in the name of my noble friend Lord Winter-bottom. This Amendment repeals various spent or obsolete provisions in the Industrial Assurance and Friendly Societies Act 1948. They are, in the main, provisions either deferring the operation of provisions of the Act until a certain period has expired or certain events have happened, and the period has long since passed or the event has long since happened.
§ Amendment moved—
§ Page 92, line 32, at end insert—
| 11 & 12 Geo. 6. c. 39. | The Industrial Assurance and Friendly Societies Act1948. | In section 2, in subsection (1), the words from "This subsection, and "onwards, and in subsection (3), the words "from the expiration of one year from the day appointed as aforesaid". |
| Section 5(3). | ||
| In section 6(1), in the proviso, paragraphs (a) and (b). | ||
| Section 10(4). | ||
| Section 11(4). | ||
| In section 12, subsection (1), in subsection (3), the words from the beginning to "Provided that" and subsection (4). | ||
| Section 17(2). | ||
| Section 19(1) to (4). | ||
| Sections 21 and 22. | ||
| Section 25(5). | ||
| Schedule 6. | ||
| —(The Lord Chancellor.) |
§ On Question, Amendment agreed to.
§ THE LORD CHANCELLORThe effect of this Amendment is to add Sections 3(3), 3(4) and 33(5) to the list of provisions in the Insurance Companies Act 1958 which are "spent or obsolete enactments" ceasing to have effect by virtue of Clause 86. Sections 3(3) and 3(4) were transitional provisions enacted in 1909 applying respectively to, first, mutual life insurance companies carrying 2185 on non-life business and established before August 9, 1870 (the date of enactment of the Life Assurance Companies Act, 1870) and, second, life insurance companies established before that date which might still have contracts entered into before that date. Section 33(5) was a transitional provision enacted in 1909 permitting any insurance company to continue to treat as life insurance business any non-life insurance business so treated under the provisions of any special pre-July 19, 1910, Act relating to that particular company. The Life Offices Association and the Industrial Life Offices Association have agreed that all these provisions are now spent and can be repealed. I beg to move.
§ Amendment moved—
§
Page 92, line 36, column 3, at end insert:—
("Section 3(3) and (4) Section 33(5).")
—(The Lord Chancellor.)
§ On Question, Amendment agreed to.
§ Schedule 5, as amended, agreed to.
§ Schedule 6 [Enactments repealed]:
§ LORD WINTERBOTTOMI beg to move Amendment No. 91.
§ Amendment moved—
§ Page 93, line 2, at end insert:—
§ ("PART (Repeals in the Industrial Assurance Act 1923)
| REPEALS IN THE INDUSTRIAL ASSURANCE ACT 1923 | ||
| Provision | Extent of Repeal | Time at which Repeal is to take Effect |
| Section 1. | In subsection (1), the words from the beginning to 'Provided that' | The passing of this Act.") |
| Section 39. | In subsection (4), the words from the beginning to 'three months' |
§ —(Lord Winterbottom)
§ On Question, Amendment agreed to.
§ THE LORD CHANCELLORI beg to move Amendment No. 92. The proviso to Section 5(1) of the Insurance Companies Act 1958 grants a concession to any mutual insurance company carrying on life assurance business 2186 or industrial assurance business where the profits are allocated to members wholly or mainly by abatements of premium, in that it permits such a company to make the abstract of the actuary's report (required by Section 5(1)) at intervals of five years, whereas other insurance companies carrying on those classes of business and allocating profits in a similar manner would in certain circumstances be obliged to make the abstract more frequently. It is considered, however, that there is no good reason why this particular mode of distribution of profits should be specially treated and that the proviso should accordingly be repealed. The Life Offices Association, the Industrial Life Offices Association and the Government Actuary's Department agree with this proposal.
§ Amendment moved—
§ Page 95, line 9, at end insert—
| ("Section 5. | In subsection (1), the proviso. |
| Section 8. | Subsection (5).") |
§ —(The Lord Chancellor.)
§ LORD DRUMALBYNHas this Amendment any practical effect? Section 5 says that every insurance company
shall, once in every five years, or at such shorter intervals as may be prescribed by the deed of settlement of the company, or by its regulations or byelaws,cause a quinquennial investigation to take place. Has this really any practical effect?
§ THE LORD CHANCELLORI understand that in fact it has. There is no particular reason why this particular class should he treated differently.
§ On Question, Amendment agreed to.
§ LORD WINTERBOTTOMI beg to move this Amendment.
§ Amendment moved—
§ Page 95, line 22, column 2, leave out from ("except") to end of line 24 and insert ("as applied by the Industrial Assurance Act 1923 and except in relation to defaults in complying with requirements of the Act of 1958 occurring before the passing of this Act").—(Lord Winterbottom.)
§ On Question, Amendment agreed to.
§ LORD WINTERBOTTOMI beg to move.
§ Amendment moved—
§ Page 95, line 33, column 2, leave out ("seven") and insert ("one").—(Lord Winterbottom.)
§ On Question, Amendment agreed to.
§ On Question, Whether Schedule 6, as amended, shall be agreed to?
§ LORD DRUMALBYNMay I ask two concluding questions?—I promise that they will be the last. Part II of this Schedule includes the repeal of Part I of Schedule 2 to the Insurance Companies Act 1958, which relates to mutual associations. We have just heard from the Lord Chancellor that there is no reason why mutual associations should be treated in any different way from anybody else. But they are different from anybody else, of course. There is an essential difference, and I wonder why that is now dispensed with. Also, paragraph 11 of Schedule 2 is to be left out. That paragraph says:
Where, on the application of any insurance company, the Board of Trade are satisfied…that it carries on business wholly or mainly for the purpose of insuring a limited class of persons…and so on. This again is to deal with a special case. Is this provision to be regarded as spent? Is it no longer necessary? Will authorisation be required in each case by the Board of Trade? What is the reason for this also being dispensed with?
§ LORD WINTERBOTTOMI am sorry that I cannot answer with certainty of accuracy the points made by the noble Lord, Lord Drumalbyn. With his permission I will write to him and give him the answer.
§ Remaining Schedule, as amended, agreed to.
§ House resumed: Bill reported with Amendments.