asked the Minister for Defence whether a soldier who prior to joining the Army was a contributor under the Unemployment Insurance Acts, but had exhausted his contributions and was then no longer entitled to benefit, would, on discharge from the Army, be credited with the special contributions provided for in Section 7 of the Unemployment Insurance Act, 1923.
CEISTEANNA—QUESTIONS. ORAL ANSWERS. - SOLDIERS' UNEMPLOYMENT CONTRIBUTIONS.
TOMAS MacEOIN
It appears that this question arises out of a reply which I gave to a question asked by Deputy Alderman Byrne on the 25th September last, and which I regret to say, was not accurate. The words "to their credit" in that reply involves a misinterpretation of Section 7 of the Unemployment Insurance Act, 1923, in as much as they imply that the contributions due from the Minister under the first part of that Section, would not be payable if all contributions paid in respect of a soldier prior to enlistment, had been exhausted as regards right to benefit. That implication is not in accordance with the law of the case. Regardless of the amount of benefit that has been paid to him prior to enlistment, every soldier
who enlisted in the Army for any period not exceeding twelve months,
or
who enlisted before 1st May, 1923, for a period of service which terminated on or before 1st May, 1924,
and
who, in addition, prior to the date of enlistment had had paid in respect of him under the Unemployment Acts either twenty contributions at any time or ten contributions since the 8th day of November, 1920,
shall have paid on his behalf by the Minister for Defence contributions, so as to secure that there shall be not less than twelve contributions to his credit in respect of each insurance year, during which year, or part of which, he has served in the Army.
In short, and generally speaking, the reply to the Deputy's question is, therefore, in the affirmative. The fact that pre-enlistment contributions had or had not been exhausted in any particular case, does not affect the matter.