198 
MAJORITY REPORT. 
benefits in the form of treatment which are being provided out 
of the substantial surpluses accruing to tho particular Societies 
catering for them. We return to this subject at a later 
stage in this Chapter (para. 589). We feel, moreover, that the 
demarcation of new classes for the purpose of adding to the list 
of employments to be excepted from insurance would give rise 
to very difficult administrative problems and, in practice, would 
be bound to lead to many hard cases. In this connexion we 
would refer to the evidence of Sir Walter Kinnear, Q. 23,397 and 
23,403. We do not, therefore, recommend any alteration of the 
present income limits for compulsory insurance. 
462. Another proposal for the exclusion from Health Insurance 
of a class of employed person who at present fall within the com- 
pulsory provisions of the Act was made to us by the Stepney 
Borough Council (App. TXXXVIII). The persons in 
question are men who are given casual work by the Council, e.g., 
on the cleansing of streets under schemes for the relief of 
uneroployment. The main argument put forward by the Council 
in support of their proposal was that the whole period covered 
by employment of this nature in the case of any one man in any 
year was so short that he could derive little or no advantage by 
the payment of Health Insurance contributions in respect of the 
employment. On the other hand, however, even a short period 
of employment occurring in a prolonged spell of unemployment 
may be of value to an insured person, by reducing his arrears and 
thereby assisting him to avoid reduction in his benefits. Moreover, 
as was brought out in the examination of the witness who appeared 
before us on behalf of the Council, no case could be made out for 
differential treatment of this particular type of casual employment 
(Barnby Q. 21,325 and 21,330), while a general exception of all 
casual employment would give rise to serious difficulties involving 
great danger to the whole system of collection of contributions. 
We do not, therefore, see our way to make a recommendation 
in the direction desired. 
463. A further suggestion for an extension of the classes of 
persons who are excepted from compulsory insurance was made 
to us by the Welsh Area of the National Union of Clerks and 
Administrative Workers (App. CXXXI, 7). The Union submitted 
that clerks and salaried officials who, as a condition of their em- 
ployment, contribute to a fund which provides sickness and dis- 
ablement benefits of at least equal value to those given by the 
Act, should be excepted. We cannot, however, see our way to 
recommend the adoption of this proposal. We would point oub 
that there is not, in the case of employment of the nature referred 
to by the witnesses, the same security of tenure as in the case of 
employment under the Crown or by public’ authorities 
or statutory companies, nor are the conditions of employment 
of the permanent nature which characterises the various classes 
of employment which are already excepted.