§ Mr. Nicholas Edwardsasked the Secretary of State for Social Services whether he has now reached a decision regarding the draft National Insurance (Occupational Pensioners) (Unemployment Benefit) Regulations, 1970, laid in the last Parliament.
§ Sir K. JosephYes. I have decided to withdraw them. But I am clear that matters cannot be left as they are. The National Insurance Advisory Committee, on whose recommendations the proposals in the draft regulations were based, found that the present situation constitutes a serious misuse of the national insurance scheme and, while I am not committed to particular proposals, I cannot at present see any alternative to action along the lines they recommended. In view however of the report made on the draft regulations by the Select Committee on Statutory Instruments, I think the right course would be to deal with the matter by legislation and this I intend to do at the next opportunity.