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NATIONAL HEALTH INSURANCE ACT, 1924.

(ii) if he joined an approved society after his entry or enlistment, be deemed to reside in that national area in which the registered or head office or other principal place of business of the society or branch which he has joined is situate;

(iii) in any other case be deemed to reside in England; and

(c) all persons entitled to benefits payable out of the Navy, Army and Air Force Insurance Fund shall be deemed to reside in England.

(2) Discharge shall, in the case of a man of the forces who on the completion of any term of service is transferred to a reserve, include transfer to the reserve, and a man of the forces who absents himself on desertion shall be deemed to have been discharged on the date on which he so absents himself, and to re-enter or re-enlist on the date on which the absence terminates.

(3) The foregoing provisions of this Act relating to men of the forces shall, subject to such adaptations and modifications as may be prescribed, apply to men belonging to the Naval Reserves when employed on service during war or any emergency, to men of the Army Reserve and Air Force Reserve when called out on service otherwise than for training, and to men of the Territorial Army and Auxiliary Air Force when called out on embodiment or on service otherwise than for training, but except as aforesaid, shall not apply to any such men.

Mercantile Marine.

62. BENEFITS, CONTRIBUTIONS, &c., OF SEAMEN.-(1) Neither sickness benefit nor disablement benefit shall be paid to a master or seaman suffering from any disease or disablement in respect of any period during which the owner of the ship is, under the Merchant Shipping Act, 1894 (57 & 58 Vict. c. 60), as amended by any subsequent enactment, or otherwise, liable to defray the expense of the necessary surgical and medical advice and attendance and medicine and of his maintenance, and he shall not be entitled to medical benefit during any such period:

Provided that, if during any part of any such period as aforesaid the owner of the ship is not liable to pay wages to the master or seaman so suffering from disease or disablement, sickness benefit in respect of that part of the period may, if the master or seaman has dependants, be paid in whole or part, and the benefit so paid shall be paid to, or applied for the relief or maintenance of, those dependants in such manner as the society or committee by which the benefit is administered, after consultation whenever possible with the master or seaman, thinks fit.

(2) Any period during which a master or seaman is, under the provisions of this section, not entitled to sickness or disablement benefit shall be excluded in computing the period of twenty-six weeks during which sickness benefit may continue, and any disease or disablement suffered by a master or seaman during any such period as is herein before first mentioned shall, for the purposes of the provisions of this Act which enact that in certain cases disease or disablement is to be deemed a continuation of a previous disease or disablement, be deemed not to be a disease or disablement. (3) In the case of masters and seamen serving on foreign-going ships the employed rate and the employer's contributions shall each be reduced by twopence a week, and every four weekly contributions paid in any prescribed period by or in respect of any master or seaman while serving in such a ship shall, for the purposes of calculating arrears, be treated as five such contributions:

Provided that there shall be credited to the approved society of which the master or seaman is a member, or, if he is a deposit contributor, to his account in the Deposit Contributors Fund, a sum equal to three-sevenths of the amount of the contributions actually paid in respect of him, and an equal sum shall be treated as having been expended on sickness benefit, and the proper proportion thereof shall accordingly be paid out of moneys provided by Parliament.

(4) A master or seaman who is neither domiciled nor has a place of residence in the United Kingdom shall not be deemed to be employed within the meaning of this Act, but the employer shall be liable to pay the same contributions in respect

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of him as would otherwise have been payable by him as employer's contributions, except in cases where the ship is engaged in regular trade on foreign stations:

Provided that this subsection shall have effect subject to the foregoing sections of this Act which make provision for the case of persons resident outside the United Kingdom and for the making of mutual arrangements between the United Kingdom and the Irish Free State.

(5) The provisions of this Act affecting the employed rate and the rates of contributions of employers and contributors in Northern Ireland, and depriving insured persons in Northern Ireland of medical benefit, or conferring upon such persons the right to sanatorium benefit, shall not apply to any master or seaman unless he has a permanent place of residence in Northern Ireland and is not a member of the Seaman's National Insurance Society hereinafter in this Act mentioned, and, in the case of a master or seaman serving on a foreign-going ship to whom the provisions aforesaid apply, the amount by which the employed rate and the employer's contributions are to be reduced shall be one penny a week.

(6) For the purpose of ascertaining the sums to be retained by the Minister out of the contributions of masters and seamen serving in foreign-going ships for the purpose of discharging his liabilities in respect of reserve values or for the purpose of being applied otherwise as in this Act provided, every six weekly contributions at the reduced rate paid by or in respect of any such master or seaman shall be treated as seven weekly contributions.

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63. SEAMEN'S NATIONAL INSURANCE SOCIETY.-(1) The Seamen's National Insurance Society (in the provisions of this Part of this Act relating to the Mercantile Marine referred to as the Society "), constituted under the National Insurance Act, 1911 (1 & 2 Geo. 5, c. 55), shall continue to exist, and shall, notwithstanding anything in this Act, be an approved society.

(2) The affairs of the Society shall be managed by a committee constituted in accordance with a scheme prepared by the Board of Trade with the approval of the Minister, and comprising representatives of the Board of Trade, of shipowners, and of members of the Society, in equal proportions, and one of the representatives of the Board of Trade shall be a person nominated by the Ministry of Labour for Northern Ireland.

(3) Any masters or seamen who are employed within the meaning of this Act, and, if the rules of the Society so provide, any masters or seamen who are voluntary contributors, shall be entitled to become members of the Society.

(4) The rules of the Society shall provide for allowing a member who leaves the sea service and is unable to obtain admission to another approved society on account of the state of his health to remain a member of the Society for the purposes of this Act, and may so provide in the case of a member who leaves the sea service and continues to be or becomes a voluntary contributor.

(5) Members of the Society shall for the purposes of this Act be deemed to reside in England, and the medical benefit of members of the Society shall be administered by the Society instead of by insurance committees, and the provisions of this Act relating to the administration of medical benefit shall apply accordingly, subject to such modifications as may be prescribed, but nothing in this provision shall prevent the Society from agreeing with any insurance committee for the administration of medical benefit by the committee in relation to individual members of the Society.

(6) Nothing in this section shall prevent any such master or seaman as aforesaid from joining another approved society instead of the Society.

64. SEAMEN'S SPECIAL FUND.-(1) All contributions paid by employers in respect of masters or seamen who are neither domiciled nor have a place of residence in the United Kingdom, and are consequently deemed not to be employed within the meaning of this Act, shall (subject to the foregoing sections of this Act which make provision for the case of persons resident outside the United Kingdom and for the making of mutual arrangements between the United Kingdom and the Irish Free State) be credited to a special fund (in this Act referred to as the seamen's special fund").

NATIONAL HEALTH INSURANCE ACT, 1924.

(2) The seamen's special fund shall be vested in trustees nominated under, and managed by a governing body constituted in accordance with, a scheme to be prepared by the Joint Committee after consultation with the Board of Trade, and comprising three representatives of shipowners and six representatives of insured persons, and the scheme shall provide for the representatives of insured persons being selected from the members of the Society and of any other societies more than threefourths of whose members are masters or seamen, as nearly as may be in proportion to the membership of those societies respectively.

(3) The accounts of the seamen's special fund shall be subject to audit, and the fund shall be subject to the provisions of this Act relating to valuations, surpluses and deficiencies (subject to the prescribed modifications) as if it were an approved society.

(4) The governing body of the seamen's special fund shall, subject to the approval of the Board of Trade and of the Joint Committee, prepare a scheme for the provision out of the sums credited to the seamen's special fund of such benefits for masters and seamen, being members of approved societies, as are specified in the scheme (including pensions for masters and seamen with long sea service), and the scheme may provide for preference being given to masters and seamen who have served in foreign-going ships over those who have served in coasting and home trade ships, and for such preference being proportionate to the length of time spent in the firstmentioned service.

(5) The cost of any benefits under the said scheme shall be paid as to the proper proportion thereof out of moneys provided by Parliament, and the expenses of administering the benefits under the said scheme shall, up to the prescribed amount, be apportioned in the prescribed manner among, and paid as expenses of administration of, those societies whose members include persons entitled to the said benefits.

66

PART IV.-FINANCIAL PROVISIONS.

Central Finance.

65. CONSTITUTION OF NATIONAL HEALTH INSURANCE FUND.-(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act, all sums received in respect of contributions under this Act and all sums paid out of moneys provided by Parliament in respect of benefits, and the expenses of the administration of benefits shall be paid into a fund which shall be called the National Health Insurance Fund" and shall be under the control and management of the Minister, and the sums required to meet expenditure properly incurred by approved societies and insurance committees for the purposes of benefits administered by them and the administration of such benefits shall be paid out of the National Health Insurance Fund.

(2) The sums payable to the National Health Insurance Fund out of moneys provided by Parliament shall be paid in such manner and at such times as the Treasury may determine.

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(3) The accounts of the National Health Insurance Fund shall be audited by the Comptroller and Auditor-General in such manner as the Treasury may direct. 66. CREDITING OF RESERVE VALUES.-(1) On a person of the age of seventeen or upwards joining an approved society for the purposes of this Act there shall be credited to the society a capital sum (in this Act referred to as a reserve value") calculated in accordance with tables prepared by the Minister, showing the capital sums respectively required in respect of members entering into insurance at ages over sixteen to meet the estimated loss, if any, arising through the acceptance by an approved society of those persons as members upon the terms and conditions as regards contributions and benefits prescribed by this Act.

(2) The sums so credited to a society in respect of reserve values shall carry interest at the rate of three per cent. per annum.

(3) Regulations may be made with respect to the crediting and variation (whether by way of increase or decrease) and cancellation of reserve values, and in making

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any such regulations regard shall be had to the abolition by section two of the National Health Insurance Act, 1922 (12 & 13 Geo. 5, c. 38), of the Women's Equalisation Fund.

67. APPLICATION OF SUMS TO BE RETAINED OUT OF WEEKLY CONTRIBUTIONS.(1) Out of each weekly contribution paid by or in respect of an insured person who is a member of an approved society there shall be retained by the Minister, if the insured person is a man, the sum of twopence and two-ninths of a penny, and, if the insured person is a woman, the sum of one penny and four-fifths of a penny, and the amounts so retained shall be applied as follows, that is to say :-(a) In the case of an insured person being a man one penny and two-thirds of a penny, and in the case of an insured person being a woman one penny and two-fifths of a penny shall, together with any other moneys available for the purpose, be applied in manner hereinafter provided towards discharging the liabilities of the Minister to approved societies in respect of the reserve values created under this Act or any Act repealed by this Act; and (b) In the case of an insured person being a man five seventy-seconds of a penny, and in the case of an insured person being a woman one-twentieth of a penny, shall be carried to a fund to be called " the Central Fund," and in the case of an insured person being a man thirty-five seventy-seconds of a penny, and in the case of an insured person being a woman seventwentieths of a penny, shall be carried to a fund to be called "the Contingencies Fund":

Provided that, if at any time it appears to the Joint Committee that, after taking into account the necessity of creating a proper reserve, the sums standing to the credit of the Central Fund are more than sufficient for the purposes for which that fund is established, the Committee may by regulations provide for decreasing the amounts to be carried to that fund and making a corresponding increase in the amounts to be carried to the Contingencies Fund.

(2) The Minister shall periodically apportion among the several societies, including for this purpose the Navy, Army and Air Force Insurance Fund, the sums retained by him and the sums, if any, otherwise available for the discharge of his liabilities in respect of reserve values, in proportion to the amount of reserve values for the time being credited to the several societies, and shall credit to each society the amount so apportioned, and any balance of the sums so credited to a society, after providing for interest on the reserve values for the time being credited to the society, shall be written off the reserve values so credited.

(3) The Minister shall periodically apportion among the several societies the sums directed by this Act to be carried to the Contingencies Fund in the following manner, that is to say, as respects such part of the said sums as are derived from contributions paid in respect of men, in proportion to the number of contributions credited in respect of the members of those societies respectively who are men, and as respects such part of the said sums as are derived from contributions paid in respect of women, in proportion to the number of contributions credited in respect of the members of those societies respectively who are women, and the sums so apportioned to any society shall form the contingencies fund of the society and be available for making good any deficiency of the society or of the branches thereof in manner provided in this Act.

68. CENTRAL FUND.—(1) The Central Fund shall be under the control of the Joint Committee, and there shall be carried to that fund in respect of each year the sum of one hundred and forty-five thousand pounds, to be provided as to one hundred and forty-two thousand pounds by the Parliament of the United Kingdom and as to three thousand pounds by the Parliament of Northern Ireland, together with the sums which under this Act are directed to be carried to that fund, and all accumulations of interest on the money for the time being standing to the credit of that fund:

Provided that if provision is made by regulations under the last preceding

NATIONAL HEALTH INSURANCE ACT, 1924.

section for decreasing the amounts which under that section are to be carried to the Central Fund in such manner that those amounts will be less than one-eighth of the aggregate amounts to be carried to the Contingencies Fund and the Central Fund, the aforesaid sums of one hundred and forty-two thousand pounds and three thousand pounds shall be respectively reduced to amounts which bear the same proportion to those sums as the said decreased amounts bear to one-eighth of the said aggregate

amounts.

(2) Where the Minister satisfies the Treasury as respects any sums received by him on account of sales of stamps issued for the purposes of this Act that no claim has been or is likely to be made by or on behalf of any approved society or any deposit contributor for the crediting of those sums to the society or the Deposit Contributors Fund, those sums, after deducting therefrom any amounts payable in respect of the cost of medical benefit, shall, as to nine-tenths thereof be carried to the Central Fund, and as to the residue thereof be applied in such manner as may be prescribed:

Provided that where any such sums in respect of which the Minister satisfies the Treasury as aforesaid represent contributions paid by or in respect of masters or seamen being masters or seamen who were serving on foreign-going ships such proportion of those sums as may be prescribed shall be credited to the seamen's special fund, and the balance thereof shall be dealt with as herein before in this subsection directed.

69. RESERVE SUSPENSE FUND.-(1) For the purposes of this Act, there shall be a fund to be called "the Reserve Suspense Fund."

(2) Provision may be made by regulations generally with respect to the administration of the Reserve Suspense Fund, and any regulations so made shall provide— (a) that the fund shall be kept in two parts, the one relating to the transfer values of insured persons being men, and the other relating to the transfer values of insured persons being women; and

(b) that the reserve values to be credited in any year to approved societies in respect of persons joining such societies for the purposes of this Act, or such portion of those reserve values as may be prescribed, shall be provided out of the sums standing in that year to the credit of the fund instead of in the manner provided by this Act; and

(c) for the manner in which the balance of those sums remaining after providing for reserve values shall be dealt with and applied.

(3) Provision may be made by regulations for charging to the funds of an approved society and carrying to the Reserve Suspense Fund such sum, calculated in the prescribed manner, as represents the estimated cost (inclusive of administration expenses) of medical benefit in respect of each member of the society who attains the age of seventy years, and for determining the amounts to be transferred in each year from the fund to insurance committees in respect of any such members.

70. INVESTMENT ACCOUNT.-(1) The Minister shall ascertain periodically what sums standing in the National Health Insurance Fund to the credit of the several societies and of the Deposit Contributors Fund, the Navy, Army and Air Force Insurance Fund, and the Reserve Suspense Fund are available for investment, and the amount so ascertained shall, so far as not required under the provisions of this Act to be paid over to societies for investment, or to be retained for investment on their behalf or for the discharge of liabilities of societies, be carried to a separate account to be called "the Investment Account," and shall be paid over to the National Debt Commissioners and by them invested in accordance with regulations made by the Treasury in any securities which are for the time being authorised by Parliament as investments for Savings Banks funds, but those Commissioners shall, in making the investment, give preference to stock or bonds issued under the provisions of the Acts relating to borrowing for raising capital for the purposes of the local loans fund where the purposes for which the capital is required is the making of advances for the purposes of the Housing Acts, 1890 to 1923:

Provided that nothing in this section shall prevent the Minister paying over to

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