VISCOUNT CRANBORNE (Rochester)I beg to ask the Secretary to the Admiralty whether his attention has been called to the case of the three brothers Parrett, who were employed in Her Majesty's Dockyard, Chatham; is he aware that one brother had been over 30 years, and the other two nearly 40 years, in the dockyard; that in every case at the times of their death they had almost completed the period of service after which they would have been entitled to a pension; that in one case the man actually died when the formalities granting it to him wore on the eve of conclusion; and that, nevertheless, no pension or gratuity has been paid to the families they left behind; and whether the Admiralty will consider some change in the Regulations by which these pensions, which are, in fact, deferred pay, may not be entirely lost in such cases?
MR. E. ROBERTSON(who replied) said: The facts are substantially as stated in the question. A pension is personal to the man who has earned it; and the fact that be unfortunately does not live to draw it confers no claim for compensation on the widow or children. 221 The Regulations as to pensions are applicable to the whole Civil Service of the Crown, and cannot be altered by the Admiralty.
VISCOUNT CRANBORNEBut is not the pension partly in the nature of deferred pay, and could not some grant be equitably made in cases of this kind? Will the hon Gentleman inquire as to that?
MR. E. ROBERTSONThese pensions are not of the nature of deferred pay. I shall be happy to show the noble Lord the Regulations on the subject.