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who desired to obtain the advantage of this extended system of benefits although they had exhausted all their contributory rights, or even although they had paid no contributions at all, were required not only to fulfil all the usual conditions for covenanted benefit (except those relating to contributions), but also to satisfy certain additional conditions. These extra conditions varied somewhat from time to time, but in the main they required the claimant to show that he was normally employed in an insured trade, that he had done what, in the cir cumstances of his case, could be regarded as a reasonable amount of work in a recent period, and that he was making every reason able effort to obtain work suited to his capacities.
The various measures dealing with uncovenanted benefit pro ceeded for some time on the basis of allowing it to be drawn for a stated number of weeks during certain periods which were termed "special periods." It was found that the provision so made did not meet the needs of the case and that many insured persons were obliged to apply to the poor law authorities for relief, during the intervals, or "gaps" as they were termed, between the periods for which benefit was payable. From time to time the number of weeks for which benefit might be drawn during the "special peri ods" was extended and increased and the "gaps" were reduced in length and finally abolished.
The additional conditions which had to be fulfilled by recipients of extended benefit were in general of such a character that they did not readily lend themselves to precise adjudication or deter mination by the authorities set up to give decisions on the normal conditions. Partly for this reason, partly in order to ease the burden which would otherwise have fallen on the ordinary machin ery, the work of advising whether or not extended benefit should be allowed in individual cases was given to the local employment committees, bodies which had been appointed by the Ministry of Labour to advise him on the employment position in the areas of the employment exchanges and generally on the work of the ex changes. These committees were representative of the employers and employed in each district and had additional members nom inated by other bodies such as boards of guardians and ex-service men's associations.
As a further means of meeting the need for exceptional assist ance to the unemployed a measure which, in its title, was described as a "temporary provision," was passed in Nov. 1921, by which
an insured person in receipt of unemployment benefit became entitled to receive in addition 5s. a week for his dependent wife and is. a week for each dependent child. This act was intended to operate for six months only, but the provision made under it for adult and juvenile dependents was made part of the general unemployment insurance scheme early in 1922. The classes of per sons in respect of whom the 5s. allowance might be paid were also extended and the rate for children was increased to 2S. a week.
the Depression.—In order to meet the increased ex penditure due to the long continued depression and to the grant of extended and dependents' benefit the contributions of all three parties—employers, employed and the Exchequer—were raised and power was given to borrow up to £30,000,000. The contribu tion in respect of a man became 2s. I id., borne as to i od. by the employer, as to 9d. by the employed and as to 64d. by the Ex chequer. This was, later, reduced to is. 9d., the three parties paying 8d., 7d., and 6d. respectively. There have been variations also in the rates of benefit. Starting in 1920 with 15s. for men and 12S. for women these rates were raised to 20S. and 16s. respectively in March 1921, but were reduced to 15s. and 12s. again from the end of June 1921. As from Aug. 1924 they were again increased to 18s. for men and 15s. for women. The changes in rates under the acts of 1927 and 1930 are mentioned later. It is right to say that the various acts of Parliament passed from the end of 1920 to 1926 inclusive were all regarded as emergency measures and that the extended benefit paid under them has been regarded as paid in advance of future contributions. No separate account has been kept of the cost of extended benefit but for some time before April 1928 probably more than half the persons in receipt of bene fit were drawing extended benefit. The amount of the debt has varied considerably. The borrowing power was first exercised in July 1921. By the end of the year the debt was £7,000,000. It reached £17,060,000 in March 1923, but fell to £5,000,000 in 1924. It rose again to nearly £25,000,000 in March 1927 largely in consequence of the severe unemployment due to the coal dispute which lasted for six months or more in 1926.