Written Answers
British Museum Admission Charges
asked Her Majesty's Government:Whether the views of the British Museum Trustees have been ascertained on the practicability of introducing admission charges to the permanent collections during the Tutankhamun Exhibition.
The Trustees of the British Museum have not offered any views on this matter. While the Bill is still before Parliament I cannot name the day for the introduction of charges. When the date is known the practical aspects will be discussed before charges are introduced.
"Fair Deal For The Fair Sex"
asked Her Majesty's Government:Which recommendations of
Fair Deal for the Fair Sex have been, are being, or will be, implemented.
Recommendation Number
| Recommendations on which action has been taken
|
| 1 | Electors overseas on business (and their spouses) to be entitled to vote by proxy. |
| 5 | Damages awarded to widows under Fatal Accidents Acts: courts not to take account of remarriage or prospects of remarriage of the widow of the deceased. |
| 6(b) | Damages awarded under Fatal Accidents Acts: abolition of court's power to control widow's share. |
| 11 | Attachment of earnings order to be recorded on P45 tax form. (An alternativ approach has been adopted in that provisions now consolidated in the Attachme of Earnings Act 1971 requiring debtors to notify court of changes of employment.) |
| 12 | Payment of maintenance order to be made by post. |
| 15 | Damages for adultery to be abolished. |
| 16–22 | Some of the recommendations concerning property in marriage were overtaken by the Matrimonial Proceedings and Property Act 1970. The Law Commission are at present studying the whole field of family property law, and have recently published a working paper on the subject. |
| 23 | Women not to be required to give marital status when signing a deed or being a party to litigation. |
| 24* | Married women to be treated for tax purposes as if single.(Earned income only— with effect from 1972–73.) |
| 27* | Women not to be required to be in full-time employment or completely incapacitated as a condition of claiming housekeeper allowance. Relief should be available on the same terms to both sexes. (Where there are resident children housekeeper allowance has been largely superseded by additional personal allowance.) |
| 28* | Husband's gross income to be considered when maintenance is awarded. |
| 29 | Aggregation of children's income with that of parents to be abolished. |
| 31* | Post-war credits to be payable to women at same age as men. (All post-war credits to be paid out irrespective of age in 1972.) |
| 34* | The present effect of estate duty on the matrimonial home to be alleviated. |
*Indicates implemented in part. | |
In addition, legislation has been, or is to be, introduced by the Government or
Recommendation Number
| |
| 2 | The Government has undertaken that, if possible, amendments will be introduced during the passage of the present Criminal Justice Bill through Parliament to replace the present property qualification (which in practice excludes many women from jury service) by a qualification based on citizenship [as evidenced by inclusion in the electoral register]. |
| 7 | Separated or divorced woman to be entitled to her own domicile. A Private Member's Bill, the Domicile and Matrimonial Proceedings Bill 1972, is down for Second Reading in another place on June 16, 1972. |
| 10 | Equal rights of guardianship over their children for husband and wife. Legislation is to be introduced to provide for this in England and Wales. |
| 13 and 14 | Rights of mothers of illegitimate children. A Private Member's Bill, the Affiliation Proceedings (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill, was given a Second Reading in another place on January 28, 1972. |
Further consideration is still being given to other recommendations.
The following recommendations in the Cripps Report, Fair Share for the Fair Sex, have been substantially implemented:with their assistance to implement to a substantial extent the following recommendations:
Immigrants' Means
asked Her Majesty's Government:(
a) What proof of amount in cash or asset value is required of an individual not normally resident in the United Kingdom who seeks entry with residence permission beyond six month; ( b) what minimum amount in contribution to any national fund is required before any payment can be received from any statutory or welfare fund.
In accordance with the Immigration Rules (Cmnd. 4298, paragraph 50, and Cmnd. 4296, paragraph 31) a person seeking permission to settle in the United Kingdom as being of independent means must show that he can support himself and his dependants without taking employment, and that he has adequate means of support for this purpose under his own control and disposable in the United Kingdom. The means must be adequate for the foreseeable future. In such circumstances, the question of payment from statutory or welfare funds would not arise.House adjourned at half-past seven o'clock.