THE INSURANCE BILL.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXIX, Issue 3389, 2 December 1911, Page 7

THE INSURANCE BILL.

REPORT STACE CONCLUDED. PROTESTS FROM UNIONISTS. .United Press Association—Copyright.) (Received Dec. 1. 11 p.m.) LONDON, Dec. 1. In the House of Commons the report stage of the Insurance Bill was concluded. 470 Government amendments were passed with the assistance of the guillotine. Mr. Bonar Law declared an outrage was being perpetrated in order that there should be no obstacle in the way of the Home Rule Bill. If the Opposition had challenged divisions the House would have had to sit until 7.30 on Saturday evening. Mr. Lloyd George said that the Bill was supposed to be non-eontentious. The Opposition left the House in a body when the divisions were called.

TO PASS THIS YEAR. MR LLOYD GEORGE'S WAR CRY •T STAND OR FALLS’ Mr. Lloyd George delivered an important speech last month, in which he said the Insurance Bill was going through this year. The Chancellor foreshadowed two important amendments in the Bill: (1) Workers who earn less than 9s a week net, and who were to have made a contribution of Id a week, will now be insured bv the State for nothing. This amelioration affects thousands of poor women. (2) Y'oung women workers who have been insured lose all benefits on marrying unless they continue in' regular work, but a scheme is being devised whereby for the payment of a small contribution these women shall continue to receive medical aid and a small allowance if widowed or bereft of their breadwinners. Thousands of domestic servants, among other classes, will be materially benefited should be Chancellor's plan bo realised. “I will fight it through," he said, “or I will fall. I believe that next year it will be in operation." SUMMARY' OF SPEECH. The Chancellor said that the three principal clauses of poverty and destitution in this country were ill-health unemployment, and drink. The Bill would remove to a great extent the first two causes, and would bring relief to 15,000.000 men and women, in addition to making provision against unemployment in the cases or 2,500,000 workers. Incidentally through the formation of the Health Committees; the Bill would combat the evils of drink. There were ten millions of working people who had nothing to stand by when misfortune came. At present the consumptive working man had to go to his fate, having nomeans to arrest the progress of the disease: but under the Bill he could at the first symptoms, without expense, go to his society doctor, and. moreover, could choose his own doctor, the man ho believed in. At the sight of some doctors patients felt better the moment they entered the room. “That is* the doctor for you—and under the Insurance Bill you can get him.” He quoted a report made by Sir F. Oppenheimer, British Consul at Frankfort, who had said the effect of the insurance scheme in Germany was to stop the continual run on the savings banks, because people were able to tide over illness with the sick allowance and free doctoring. Thus a man who put a bit away for a rainy day did not- have to draw upon it for summer showers. Taking the case of the consumptive under the Bill, the Chancellor pointed out that he would be sent, for four months to a sanatorium while his wife and children had the allowance of 10s a week to keep them going. By an amendment not only the insured worker but his wife and children would have the benefit of the sanatoria of the onhappy need arose. After great consideration he had decided that those —mostly women—who wore getting under 9s a week could ill spare a penny a week, “and 1 thins you will find the State will undorViov the whole of it-.” He referred to the “carnival of distortion” in regard to the position of the friendly societies, and gave his assurance that every member would bo better off under the Bill than at present . lie quoted figures to show the larger number of societies _ actually insolvent at the last valuation, and pointed out that every qualified society in the future would have its solvency guaranteed by the State, so no member need have any fear of the ruin of the concern in which he had put his money. Tire Oddfellows, for instance, when this Bill was passed, would have a.n addition to their reserve funds of £3,500,000.