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1. Part II (Invalidity benefit), Article 12, of the Convention (in conjunction with Article 32, paragraph 1(e)). In its previous comments, the Committee raised the question of the compatibility with the Convention of section 7 of the 1959 Federal Invalidity Insurance Act (LAI), under which cash benefits may be temporarily or permanently refused, reduced or withheld where the invalidity has been caused or aggravated by the serious misconduct of the insured person or his dependants. Since the above-mentioned provisions of the Convention authorise the suspension of benefits only in the event of wilful misconduct of the person concerned, the Committee requested the Government to provide information on the practical effect given to section 7 of the 1959 Federal Act, showing that the refusal, reduction or withdrawal of benefits is only authorised when the serious misconduct is wilful and, if this were not the case, to make the necessary amendments to the national legislation to ensure that full effect is given formally to the Convention on this point.

In its last report, in addition to enclosing an article on reductions in benefits where invalidity is caused by the misconduct of the insured person, published in 1988 in the "Revue des caisses de compensation" (the wilful nature of the misconduct of the persons concerned is not clear in the article), the Government refers to statements made by two parliamentarians requesting the Federal Council to examine the possibility of amending section 7 mentioned above, in order to bring it into line with the international provisions to which Switzerland has subscribed. The Government adds that the Federal Council has referred the matter to a Committee of the Council of States, which is currently studying the general part of Swiss social insurance law, and points out that Committee in question has not made any proposals in this respect.

The Committee of Experts had already become acquainted with this information at its 1988 session during its examination of Switzerland's application of the European Code of Social Security. It therefore notes that there have been no developments since that date and can only raise the question again in the hope that it will be possible for the necessary measures to be taken to ensure that the Convention is fully applied with regard to the point in question.

2. Part VII (Miscellaneous provisions), Article 42 (in conjunction with Article 15, paragraph 3). In reply to the Committee's previous comments concerning the lowering the age of retirement (currently 65 years for men) for persons who have been engaged in arduous or unhealthy work - in accordance with the Convention - the Government indicates in its report that the Federal Council, as part of the tenth revision of old-age insurance (AVS), plans to make it possible for men to obtain advance old-age pension as of 62 years of age. It adds that such a pension - which is to affect all men and not a given category - will nevertheless be accompanied by a reduction in the amount of benefits of 6.8 per cent per year of advance, and that the Federal Council's proposal to lower the age of retirement will only become effective when it has received the approval of Parliament.

The Committee takes note of this information and, while it considers that the Federal Council's proposal is an interesting development towards greater flexibility in the minimum age for pensions, it hopes that the reductions in the level of benefits in this case (which may amount to 20.4 per cent in the event of an advance of three years) will not affect the application of Articles 17 and 18 of the Convention. The Committee also hopes that the Government will not fail to supply full information on this matter (including statistical data) as soon as the Federal Council's proposal becomes effective.

3. Part V (Standards to be complied with by periodical payments) in conjunction with Part III (Old-age benefit). The Committee notes from the information supplied by the Government in its report that, in 1987, the old-age benefit rate for a standard beneficiary (a man with a wife of pensionable age) after 30 years of contribution attained 39.8 per cent of the wage of a skilled male manual worker, whereas in 1985 this rate was 44.8 per cent which was considered to correspond to the rate fixed by the Convention (45 per cent), account being taken, in particular, of the flexibility allowed under paragraphs 1(b) and 2(b) of Article 18 of this instrument. However, since over the past few years the amount of old-age benefits seems to have deteriorated gradually - despite the revalorisations referred to in the report - the Committee hopes that the Government will make every effort to increase the amount of these benefits so that the percentage fixed by the Convention may be attained after a period of contribution (or residence) not exceeding the period laid down by the Convention. (In this connection, the Committee points out that the Government can: (a) either, in calculating old-age pensions, also take into consideration the benefits granted under the Occupational Insurance Act (LPP), in this case establishing the scope of the old-age insurance on the basis of paragraph 1(a) of Article 16 of the Convention; (b) or, to estabish statistical data on old-age pensions on the basis not of Article 26 but of Articles 27 or 28 of the Convention, also taking account, in this case, of the scope of the insurance.)