Part of the debate – in the House of Commons am ar 15 Gorffennaf 1925.
Mr Frank Lee
, Derbyshire North Eastern
As a member of the mining industry, I have a question which I wish to raise. The men in the mining industry are peculiarly susceptible to accidents, and they pay not only under the Workmen's Compensation Act, but they pay premiums to other friendly societies, and in some parts of the country they pay premiums to what is known as the Fatal Accidents Society That society pays out benefits in the same way as under the Workmen's Compensation Act, namely, a certain amount per week to the widow and a certain amount to each child. If you are going to take account of one who is drawing under the Workmen's Compensation Act and utterly disregard similar payments received from other societies, you are going to make a distinction between families in the same neighbourhood who may be in these different societies. The Parliamentary Secretary read a Section out of the amended Workmen's Compensation Act, but he was very careful not to say how much the children would draw under that Section. I question whether he knows. He would have to make a mathematical calculation, and he would have to use his pencil pretty freely before he got at the figure, but £300 of the £600, which is the maximum that can be paid under the Workmen's Compensation Act, is put aside for the child, which does not mean that the child would draw the full £300. The most the child can draw is 6s. per week. There is certainly no connection between that and this fund. That was arranged before this was ever thought of at all, and why you should endeavour to alter the payments under this fund or that fund, whichever you intend to touch, because we have got some decent allowance, although not a proper allowance, under the Workmen's Compensation Act, is rather puzzling to my mind
I suggest that the payments that the miner makes under this Bill are more than he receives back in benefits. I know that just now the whole thing is in the melting pot, but we have a peculiar arrangement in the mining industry as to contributions of this character. An hon. Member below the Gangway suggested that payments to this fund were 50–50 as between employers and workmen, but I think he would find that it was nearer 80–20, so that the workmen are not getting anything gratuitously from the Workmen's Compensation Act. They are paying for it, and in addition they pay for whatever benefits they may get under this scheme, and why you should interfere with what is no part of State pay and not interfere with something which may be a part of State pay, I cannot understand. It appears to me that the suggestion made by a previous Speaker that this is an attack upon the workmen's compensation, payable to children has some foundation. There seem to be running right through this Bill glaring anomalies whereby you keep back from certain people, who otherwise would be entitled to benefit, certain payments, and this is one of them.
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