Following a lively meeting here to-day of the Parliamentary group fof the Independent Labour Party, it was decided, by a majority, to support the Government's: Unemployment Insurance Bill, which increases the benefits for wives of unemployed persons and young persons and provides, inter alia, for the lowering of the insurance age to 15 when the lowest age at which tone may leave school is raised thereto in April, 1981, The decision of the Parliamentlary group of the I. L. P. is of much importance as there were prospects of the Government being faced with Liberals, but also by members of the Left Wing of the Labour Party, whose demand for £1 per week for fan unemployed man, 10/- for his wife and 5/- for each child has not been fulfilled.
At the meeting to-day a minority of 14, including Mr, James Maxton, put in an amendment for rejection of the Bill, Major Walter Elliot, on behalf lof the Conservatives, will move rejection of the Bill when it comes tup for the second reading on Thursday.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.