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11 1952

SOCIAL WELFARE ACT, 1952

PART V.

Miscellaneous.

Grants to funds of superannuation schemes.

60. —(1) Regulations may provide that where, in the case of any group of employed persons—

(a) such persons are employed by the same person or are members of a trade union within the meaning of the Trade Union Acts, 1871 to 1949,

(b) such persons either are insured persons or would be insured persons but for regulations made for the purposes of paragraph (a) of subsection (5) of section 4 of this Act, and

(c) a superannuation scheme in a form approved of by the Minister has been set up for the benefit of such group,

the Minister may make grants to the funds of the superannuation scheme.

(2) Grants made pursuant to regulations for the purposes of this section and any expenses incurred by the Minister in carrying such regulations into effect shall be paid out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas and section 40 of this Act shall not apply in relation to such grants or expenses.

Widows' and orphans' (non-contributory) pensions.

61. —(1) Payments made on or after the appointed day in respect of a widow's (non-contributory) pension or an orphan's (non-contributory) pension under the Widows' and Orphans' Pensions Acts, 1935 to 1952, shall be made out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas.

(2) Where, as respects a widow's (non-contributory) pension which is payable under the Widows' and Orphans' Pensions Acts, 1935 to 1952, and which includes an allowance in respect of children, the day from which the pension becomes payable is, or is after, the appointed day, the rate of the pension shall not exceed thirty-two shillings per week.

(3) In the application of section 55 of the Widows' and Orphans' Pensions Act, 1935 (No. 29 of 1935), in relation to any period beginning on or after the appointed day, the reference in subsection (1) of that section to the Widows' and Orphans' Pensions Fund shall be construed as a reference to moneys provided by the Oireachtas.

(4) In the application of subsection (1) of section 56 of the Widows' and Orphans' Pensions Act, 1935 , in relation to any period beginning on or after the appointed day, that subsection shall be construed as if the words “and shall, in such case, pay to the Minister for Industry and Commerce out of the Widows' and Orphans' Pensions Fund a sum equal to the amount by which the arrears are so reduced” were omitted.

(5) In the application of subsection (3) of section 57 of the Widows' and Orphans' Pensions Act, 1935 , to any sum repaid or recovered under that section in respect of any period beginning on or after the appointed day, that subsection shall be construed as if the words “or disposed of for the benefit of the Exchequer in such manner as the Minister for Finance may direct” were substituted for the words “the Widows' and Orphans' Pensions Fund”.

Provisions in respect of home assistance to beneficiaries.

62. —In granting home assistance to a person in receipt of or entitled to any benefit consisting of a periodical payment, a public assistance authority shall not take into consideration any such benefit payable, except so far as such benefit exceeds ten shillings per week.

Application of Pension Books (Prohibition of Alienation) Act, 1932.

63. —Every book, card, order, voucher or other document issued to any person and upon the delivery or production or in respect of the possession of which by such person on or after a date indicated expressly or by implication on such document and subsequent to the issue of such document any benefit under this Act is payable to such person shall be deemed, for the purposes of the Pension Books (Prohibition of Alienation) Act, 1932 (No. 1 of 1932), to be a document to which the said last-mentioned Act applies, and the said last-mentioned Act shall be construed and have effect accordingly.

Reciprocal arrangements.

64. —The Minister may make such orders as may be necessary to carry out any reciprocal or other arrangements, made with the proper authority under any other Government, in respect of matters relating to insurance under this Act, and may by any such order make such adaptations of and modifications in this Act as he considers necessary.

Incorporated Insurance Industry Unemployment Insurance Board.

65. —(1) The Insurance Industry Unemployment Insurance Scheme (Board of Management) Order, 1923, and the Insurance Industry Unemployment Insurance Scheme (Insurance Fund) Order, 1923, are hereby revoked as on and from the appointed day.

(2) The Minister may do all such things as he considers necessary or expedient for the purpose of winding up the affairs of the Incorporated Insurance Industry Unemployment Insurance Board.

Termination and repeal of existing insurance codes and continuity of insurance and benefit.

66. —(1) No person shall on or after the appointed day be insured or deemed to be or treated as insured—

(a) under the National Insurance Act, 1911, or

(b) under the Unemployment Insurance Act, 1920, or any scheme under that Act, or

(c) under the Widows' and Orphans' Pensions Act, 1935 (No. 29 of 1935),

and accordingly, subject to the following provisions of this Act, the enactments set out in the Fifth Schedule to this Act as from that day are hereby repealed to the extent mentioned in the third column of that Schedule.

(2) Subject as aforesaid, the foregoing provisions of this Act shall, in relation to—

(a) persons (hereinafter in this Act referred to as existing contributors) who within the prescribed time before the appointed day are so insured or deemed to be or treated as so insured, and

(b) persons (hereinafter so referred to as existing beneficiaries)—

(i) to or in respect of whom immediately before that day any benefit, pension or allowance is, or would but for any disqualification be, payable under or by virtue of the enactments repealed by this Act, or

(ii) who then have, otherwise than as existing contributors or in respect of the insurance of existing contributors, any prospective right to or expectation of any benefit, pension or allowance under or by virtue of those enactments,

have effect with such modifications, additions and exceptions as may be prescribed for securing the continuity of this Act with those enactments or otherwise for the preservation of rights conferred under or by virtue of those enactments.

(3) Regulations under subsection (2) of this section shall, in particular, provide—

(a) as respects existing contributors, for modifying the conditions for receipt of benefit under this Act, whether by an existing contributor or in respect of his insurance by another, so as to take into account, for such purposes (including the purposes of all or some only of the benefits under this Act) and in such manner and subject to such conditions as may be prescribed, contributions paid or deemed to be paid or treated as paid under the said enactments and periods of insurance thereunder,

(b) as respects existing beneficiaries, either—

(i) for substituting for any right to benefit, pension or allowance payable under or by virtue of the said enactments a right to such benefit under this Act as may be prescribed as corresponding thereto, or

(ii) for preserving any such right and giving effect thereto (whether under this Act or by continuing in whole or in part the operation of the said enactments in relation thereto),

but in any case subject to such (if any) modifications, exceptions and additions as appear to the Minister to be appropriate.

Transfers to the Fund in certain cases.

67. —(1) On the appointed day, all assets of any fund to which this section applies shall become assets of the Fund and all liabilities of such fund shall become liabilities of the Fund.

(2) For the purposes of subsection (1) of this section, the following provisions shall have effect—

(a) all assets of any fund to which this section applies being investments (including moneys in any investment account) held on behalf of such fund shall, on the appointed day, become transferred by virtue of this section to the investment account of the Fund,

(b) all assets of any fund to which this section applies (other than those transferred by the foregoing paragraph) which are capable of being transferred to the current account of the Fund shall, on the appointed day, become so transferred,

(c) all other assets of any fund to which this section applies shall, on and after the appointed day, be held by the Minister on behalf of the Fund,

(d) any investment transferred by paragraph (a) of this subsection which is standing in the books of any bank, corporation or company in the name of any person other than the Minister for Finance shall, upon the request of that Minister, be transferred in such books into the name of that Minister,

(e) any asset transferred by paragraph (b) of this subsection which is standing in the books of any bank, corporation or company in the name of any person other than the Minister shall, upon the request of the Minister, be transferred in such books into the name of the Minister,

(f) where any chose-in-action becomes under this section an asset of the Fund, it shall not be necessary to give notice of anything effected by this section to the person bound by such chose-in-action.

(3) In this section—

assets” includes all property, whether real or personal (including choses-in-action);

fund to which this section applies” means—

(a) any fund established under any enactment repealed by this Act, or

(b) the Pensions Investment Account under the Widows' and Orphans' Pensions Act, 1935 (No. 29 of 1935), or

(c) the Insurance Fund under the Insurance Industry Unemployment Insurance Scheme (Insurance Fund) Order, 1923.

(4) In particular and without prejudice to the generality of subsection (3) of this section, any reference in this section to assets of a fund includes a reference to any sum (whether or not the amount thereof has been ascertained before the appointed day) which stands payable under any enactment repealed by this Act to that fund immediately before the appointed day, or would, but for the said repeal, become payable to that fund thereafter in relation to any period ending immediately before the appointed day or previously, and, if and in so far as may be necessary for the purpose of ascertaining any such sum on or after the appointed day and of transferring it into the Fund pursuant to this section, the said enactment shall be deemed not to have been repealed.

(5) The recurring liabilities, arising after the appointed day on account of the vesting which was effected by subsection (2) of section 8 of the Social Welfare Act, 1950 (No. 14 of 1950), of the Minister to the Minister for Finance may be discharged by a single payment by way of composition and the amount of the single payment shall be such as may be agreed upon between the Minister and the Minister for Finance.

Amendment of certain Acts.

68. —(1) As from the appointed day—

(a) the amendments specified in Part I of the Sixth Schedule shall be made in the Unemployment Assistance Act, 1933 (No. 46 of 1933),

(b) the amendment specified in Part II of the said Schedule shall be made in the Unemployment Assistance (Amendment) Act, 1935 (No. 38 of 1935),

(c) the amendments specified in Part III of the said Schedule shall be made in the Insurance (Intermittent Unemployment) Act, 1942 (No. 7 of 1942).

(2) In the case of any matter referred or reported, before the appointed day, to any umpire or court of referees in lieu of which provision is made by virtue of this section, any proceedings in relation to that matter shall not be affected by any amendment made by this section, except that, subject to the provisions of any regulations, any continuation of those proceedings, and any further proceedings in relation to that matter, shall be carried out as if the matter had been reported or referred in accordance with the relevant Act as amended by this section.

(3) The person who, immediately before the appointed day, stood appointed as the Umpire for the purposes of the Unemployment Insurance Act, 1920, shall be deemed to have been appointed on the appointed day under subsection (1), as amended by this section, of section 21 of the Unemployment Assistance Act, 1933 , to be the Umpire for the purposes of the latter Act.

(4) As from the appointed day, the following provisions shall have effect in relation to subsection (3) of section 5 of the Unemployment Assistance (Amendment) Act, 1938 (No. 2 of 1938):—

(a) if the appointed day is a first day of April, the said subsection shall not apply in relation to the financial year in which the appointed day falls or any subsequent financial year,

(b) if the appointed day is not a first day of April—

(i) the said subsection shall not apply in relation to the financial year next following that in which the appointed day falls or any subsequent financial year,

(ii) as respects the financial year in which the appointed day falls, the said subsection shall be construed as if, in lieu of requiring the transfer to the Minister in that year of three hundred thousand pounds, it required the transfer to the Minister in the portion of that year prior to the appointed day of a sum bearing to three hundred thousand pounds the same proportion as the said portion bears to a year.

(5) As from the appointed day, the following provisions shall have effect in relation to the Social Welfare Act, 1950 (No. 14 of 1950):—

(a) if the appointed day is a first day of April, neither section 15 nor section 16 of that Act shall apply in relation to the financial year in which the appointed day falls or any subsequent financial year,

(b) if the appointed day is not a first day of April—

(i) neither section 15 nor section 16 of that Act shall apply in relation to the financial year next following that in which the appointed day falls or any subsequent financial year,

(ii) section 15 of that Act shall, as respects the financial year in which the appointed day falls, be construed as if, in lieu of deeming the amount expended on administration in that year to be the aggregate of two hundred and fifteen thousand pounds and the sum paid out of the Medical Certification Fund in that year, it deemed the amount so expended in the portion of that year prior to the appointed day to be the aggregate of an amount bearing to two hundred and fifteen thousand pounds the same proportion as the said portion bears to a year and the sum paid out of the Medical Certification Fund in respect of the said portion,

(iii) section 16 of that Act shall, as respects the financial year in which the appointed day falls, be construed as if, in lieu of requiring the payment in that year of two hundred and fifteen thousand pounds, it required the payment in respect of the portion of that year prior to the appointed day of a sum bearing to two hundred and fifteen thousand pounds the same proportion as the said portion bears to a year,

(c) if the appointed day is a first day of January—

(i) section 17 of that Act shall not apply in relation to the financial year next following or any subsequent financial year,

(ii) section 26 of that Act shall not apply in relation to the calendar year in which the appointed day falls or any subsequent calendar year,

(d) if the appointed day is not a first day of January—

(i) section 17 of that Act shall, in relation to the financial year next following the commencement of the calendar year in which the appointed day falls, be construed as if it required the payment of a sum bearing to fifteen thousand pounds the same proportion as the portion of that calendar year prior to the appointed day bears to a year and shall, in relation to any subsequent financial year, not apply,

(ii) section 26 of that Act shall not apply in relation to the calendar year next following that in which the appointed day falls or any subsequent calendar year,

(iii) section 26 of that Act shall, as respects the calendar year in which the appointed day falls, be construed as if, in lieu of requiring the payment in respect of that year of forty-four thousand pounds, it required the payment in respect of the portion of that year prior to the appointed day of a sum bearing to forty-four thousand pounds the same proportion as the said portion bears to a year.

(e) “Fund” in section 21 of that Act shall be construed as referring to the Social Insurance Fund under this Act except, in the case of the first and third occurrence of the word in subsection (3), with respect to payments made under the said section before the appointed day,

(f) the second paragraph (beginning with the words “For the purposes of this subsection”) of subsection (3) of section 21 of that Act shall cease to have effect.

(6) In subsection (5) of this section, a reference to a calendar year shall be construed as a reference to a year ending on a 31st day of December.

Power to make further consequential and transitional provisions, etc.

69. —(1) Without prejudice to any specific power conferred by any of the three last foregoing sections, regulations may be made for facilitating their operation or the introduction of the system of insurance established by this Act, including, in particular, regulations providing—

(a) for modifying, as respects the period before the appointed day, any provisions of or made under any enactment repealed or amended by the foregoing provisions of this Part of this Act, or

(b) for making any savings or additional savings from the effect of any repeal or amendment effected by this Act.

(2) Any scheme for the provision of pensions or other benefits (excluding any scheme established by any enactment repealed by this Act but including any other scheme established by or under, or having statutory force by virtue of, any enactment and any scheme evidenced only by one or more policies of insurance) may be modified or wound-up in connection with the passing of this Act either—

(a) by agreement between the different parties concerned in such scheme, or

(b) in accordance with regulations made, after consideration of any representations that may be made by the different parties concerned in the scheme, by such Minister as may be determined by the Minister for Finance to be appropriate in relation to the scheme or, if the Minister for Finance determines that there is no appropriate Minister, by the Minister for Industry and Commerce.

Special provision for persons formerly insured voluntarily.

70. —Where a person was, immediately before the appointed day, insured voluntarily under the National Insurance Act, 1911, such person shall, on making application in the prescribed manner and within the prescribed period commencing on the appointed day and provided that he has not become an employed contributor, be entitled to become a voluntary contributor.

Power to remove difficulties.

71. —(1) If in any respect any difficulty arises in bringing into operation this Act, the Minister may by order do anything which appears to be necessary or expedient for bringing this Act into operation, and any such order may modify the provisions of this Act so far as may appear necessary or expedient for carrying the order into effect.

(2) Every order made by the Minister under this section shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas as soon as may be after it is made, and if a resolution is passed by either House of the Oireachtas within the next twenty-one days on which such House has sat after the order is laid before it annulling such order, such order shall be annulled accordingly, but without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under such order.

(3) No order may be made under this section after the expiration of one year after the appointed day.

Appointed day.

72. —(1) In this Act “the appointed day” means, subject to the following provisions of this section, such day as the Minister may by order appoint and different days may be appointed for different purposes of this Act or for the same purpose in relation to different cases or classes of case.

(2) Any order under subsection (1) of this section may, if the day thereby appointed is appointed for some only of the purposes of this Act or in relation only to some cases or classes of case, contain such incidental or supplementary provisions as appear to the Minister to be necessary or expedient as respects the period when this Act is to have a partial operation only, or as respects the transition from that period to the period when this Act is in full operation.

(3) Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (2) of this section, the provisions which may be made thereunder include, in particular, provision for modifying and supplementing, in relation to the period to which the order in question is to apply, the provisions of this Act and (where the repeal or amendment has not yet taken effect) of any Act repealed or amended by this Act; and the modifications of this Act which may be made by such order include provisions limiting the persons to be insured during any period during which this Act is to operate as respects some only of the benefits thereby conferred and reducing the rates of any contributions payable for any such period.

(4) Any such order as is mentioned in this section may be varied or revoked by a subsequent order appointing a day or a different day for the purposes of this Act.