conferred in Section 1 of the Act. Clause 37 (3) is referred to above under the heading "Superannuation Funds, &c." Clause 38, sub-clauses (a) and (b) deals with the subject matter of section 35 of the Act with some slight amendments. Clause 38, subclauses (c) and (d) is dealt with above under the heading "Mutual protection associations, &c." Section 36 of the Act has been repealed by the Industrial Assurance Act, 1923, and accordingly is not reproduced. Sections 30 to 34, inclusive, of the Act are partly superseded by and partly re-enacted in the relative provisions of the Bill. 61. Scotland, Northern Ireland, and Channel Islands.-Clause 39 of the Bill deals with various technical matters arising in the application of the Bill to Scotland. The Committee have assumed that any modification of the Act of 1909 in regard to Northern Ireland will be a matter for the Parliament of Northern Ireland. Clause 40 will enable such steps as may be thought proper to be taken with a view to applying the recommendations of the Committee to the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands. 62. General.-In several Clauses in the Bill (see Clauses 1 (3), 1 (4), 5 (3), and 9 (3)), provision is made for an appeal to the Court. The intention of the Committee is that such appeals should be dealt with by a Judge of the Chancery Division in Chambers; but it is understood that the more convenient method of providing for this is by Rules of Court rather than by Act of Parliament, and the Committee recommend that rules should be made accordingly. 63. It should be noted that the Bill is drafted on the footing of the general law as to Companies as it exists at present; accordingly, if any amendments are made in that law in accordance with the recent Report of the Board of Trade Committee on the Companies Acts, some corresponding amendments may be required in the appended Bill. The Committee have to record with deep personal regret the loss of their colleague, Mr. J. C. McBride. The rapid illness which terminated in his death on the 19th January, 1927, deprived the Committee of his help in the final stages of the preparation of their Report and of the proposed Bill. The results of his work, however, remain; and it is a satisfaction to the Committee to think that if their labours in relation, in particular, to Employers' Liability and Accident Insurance, prove to be of value, this will be due in no small part to Mr. McBride's immense experience in insurance matters and his sound practical judgment. The Committee desire to express their appreciation of the very able services endered by Mr. Walter J. Smith as their Secretary. His long experience of the administration by the Board of Trade of matters relating to Assurance Companies, and his tireless industry have much facilitated the Committee's task. (Signed) WALTER J. SMITH, (Secretary). 21st February 1927. A. C. CLAUSON (Chairman). S. J. H. W. ALLIN. GILBERT GARNSEY. C. M. KNOWLES. O. MORGAN OWEN. W. P. PHELPS. L. A. J. GRANVILLE RAM. G. STUART ROBERTSON. A. L. STURGE. H. M. TROUNCER. H. M. WINEARLS. APPENDICES. APPENDIX No. 1. NAMES OF THE WITNESSES. Mr. J. J. ATKINSON (Representing the Fire Offices' Committee). Mr. W. W. BENHAM, Managing Director, Provident Association of London Mr. A. DIGBY BESANT, B.A., F.I.A., President and representative of the Institute of Actuaries. Mr. J. J. BISGOOD, J.P., F.C.I.S. (Representing the London Chamber of Commerce). Mr. H. E. BURGESS, C.B.E., Senior Official Receiver in Companies' Liquidation. Mr. S. W. BURGHES, Clerk to the Committee of Lloyds. Sir JOSEPH BURN, K.B.E., F.I.A. (Representing the Life Offices' Association). Mr. ARTHUR J. COLLINS (A. J. Collins & Co., Ltd.). Mr. J. A. Cook (Representing the Associated Scottish Life Offices). Mr. C. R. V. COUTTS, F.I.A., Manager and Actuary, Provident Mutual Life Assurance Association. Mr. S. H. DODD, Asst. Secretary, Potters' Insurance Co., Ltd. Mr. W. PALIN ELDERTON, C.B.E., F.I.A., Representing the Life Offices' Association. Sir HAROLD ELVERSTON, Editor and Proprietor "Policy Holder." Mr. J. GALLATLY, Managing Director, Timber and General Mutual Accident Insurance Association, Ltd. Mr. D. D. GOLDINGHAM, Managing Director, National Employers' Mutual General Insurance Association, Ltd. Mr. W. E. GRAY, LL.B, (Representing the Accident Offices' Association). Mr. H. B. GRIEVE, A.C.I.I., General Secretary, Guild of Insurance Officials. Mr. H. GRIFFIN, F.S.I., F.A.I. (Representing the Corporation of Insurance Agents). Mr. R. GUTHRIE, F.C.I.S., Secretary, Durham and Northumberland Colliery Owners' Mutual Protection Associations. Mr. A. E. HARTLEY, Manager, Urban Fire Insurance Co., Ltd. Mr. H. T. HINES (Representing the Institute of London Underwriters). Mr. GEORGE KING, F.I.A., F.F.A., F.A.S., Consulting Actuary. Mr. GEORGE J. LIDSTONE, P.F.A., F.I.A., LL.D. (Edin.), F.A.S., F.R.S.E. (Representing the Faculty of Actuaries in Scotland). Mr. P. G. MACKINNON (Representing Lloyds Committee). Mr. STEUART E. MACNAGHTEN, F.F.A., F.I.A., A.C.A. (Representing the Faculty of Actuaries in Scotland). Mr. SUFFIELD MYLIUS, Traffic Adviser to Commissioner of Police of the Sir THOMAS NEILL, J.P. (Representing the Association of Industrial Mr. FRANCIS H. REX, F.S.I., F.A.I. (Representing the Corporation of Mr. A. H. RISELEY, O.B.E., D.L. (Representing the Corporation of Insur- Mr. D. S. SAVORY, F.I.A., Consulting Actuary, etc. Mr. R. Y. SKETCH (Representing the Accident Offices' Association). Mr. R. HILL STEWART, F.F.A. (Representing the Associated Scottish Life Mr. H. H. STITT (Representing the Liverpool Underwriters' Association). Mr. NORMAN M. WALKER, Managing Director, British General Insurance Sir ARTHUR WORLEY, K.B.E. (Representing the Fire Offices' Committee). A D I f APPENDIX No. 2. INTERIM REPORT ΤΟ THE RIGHT HONOURABLE THE PRESIDENT OF THE BOARD OF TRADE BY THE DEPARTMENTAL COMMITTEE APPOINTED TO INQUIRE AND REPORT WHAT AMENDMENTS ARE DESIRABLE IN THE ASSURANCE COMPANIES ACT, 1909. SIR, RE-INSURANCE COMPANIES. In accordance with your request that we should furnish an interim report dealing with the question whether British or Foreign Insurance Companies or both should be required to make a deposit in respect of Re-insurance business of any class, we beg to submit the following report. The question is referred to as follows in the Board of Trade memorandum, dated 8th July, 1924,* which was placed before us on our appointment :"6. (b) Re-insurance business. 66 As incidental to the subject of fire insurance a reference to re-insurance becomes necessary, as this question has recently caused some difficulty. This difficulty has arisen out of the definitions contained in Section 1 of the 1909 Act under Sub-clauses (a), (b) (c) and (d), respectively, where each of the classes of assurance business concerned is described as being "the issue of, or the undertaking of liability under, policies, &c." The early drafts of the 1909 Bill contained provisions for covering re-insurance business, but these were subsequently excluded. The Minister who was in charge of the Bill in the House of Commons, in introducing the amendment for ex. cluding re-insurance business, said, "It is not necessary that re-insurance companies should be included as they do not have any contract with the public, and as the Government is anxious not to widen unduly the scope of the Bill I have come to the conclusion that the inclusion of re-insurance business is not necessary in the public interest." 66 In an employer's liability insurance case which came before the Scottish Courts, however, in 1913, judgments were delivered by the Lord Ordinary and, subsequently (on appeal, by the Judges in the Second Division, to the effect that the definition in Section 1 was sufficient to cover re-insurance business, the words or the undertaking of liability under" being mainly relied upon. Following upon those judgments the English re-insurance companies which have since been registered have made the deposits required by the Act. The foreign fire reinsurance companies, numbering over 50, declined, however, through their London agents, to accept the judgments in the Scottish Courts, and the Board of Trade accordingly arranged to test the question in the English Courts. An agreed case against the National Insurance Company of Copenhagen recently came before Mr. Justice Branson, who delivered a judgment based on much the same grounds as those obtained in the Scottish Courts, and his decision has since been affirmed by the Court of Appeal. The case is now being taken to the House of Lords. * See Appendix "A" to the evidence of the Second Day's Sitting. |