HC Deb 02 December 1985 vol 88 cc136-7W
Mr. Meacher

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services, if, in so far as they affect the current payment of pensions, he will list the relevant statutory instruments and orders which governed the exceptions to the general requirements for employees or others to pay contributions into the statutory pension insurance scheme between 1936 and 1948, and all the employers who obtained exception under these provisions, indicating the period during which the exception was current and, where possible, whether it was for all employees or not.

Mr. Major

Since persons in excepted employments between 1936 and 1948 did not pay contributions which were credited into the state pension scheme in 1948, legislation governing exceptions does not in general affect the current payment of pensions. However, the main provisions for excepting persons from insurance during the relevant period are contained in schedule 1 to the National Health Insurance Act 1936, as amended. In addition, a large number of regulations and orders were made under this act, such as, for example:

Regulations

  • National Health Insurance, Statutory Undertakers Total
  • Exception Regulations 1939.
  • National Health Insurance Exception Regulations 1942
  • National Health Insurance Exception Regulations (No. 2) 1942
  • National Health Insurance Exception Regulations 1943
  • National Health Insurance, Statutory Undertakers Total
  • Exception (Amendment) Regulations 1946

Orders

  • Subsidiary Employments Order 1937
  • Subsidiary Emmployments Order (No. 2) 1937
  • Contractors for Manual Labour Exclusions Order 1937
  • Employment under Local and Public Authorities Order 1937
  • Employment under Local and Public Authorities (Northern Ireland) Order 1937
  • Outworkers Order 1937
  • Sharefishermen Order 1937
  • Employments (Exclusion and Inclusion) Order (Scotland) 1937
  • Subsidiary Employment Order (Northern Ireland) 1938

The full information requested is not readily available, and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

It would not be appropriate to list all the employers who from time to time obtained exception under these provisions, even if the information were available.However, in September 1946, there were some 440 employers with excepted employments in Great Britain and 135 in Northern Ireland. No information is available on the proportion of those employers whose employment was excepted.