§ MR. HOWARD VINCENTI beg to ask the First Lord of the Trea- 1825 sury if, in view of the fact recently ascertained upon official authority that one in every seven of the old people above 60 years of ago in the United Kingdom is dependent for support on Poor Law relief, and that this proportion is increased to about one in three of those over 75 years of age, Her Majesty's Government will recommend the issue of a Royal Commission to examine the various suggestions made for remedying such a state of affairs; and to consider, in concert with the leaders of Friendly Societies, the best means of securing to the industrial population the assistance of a well-secured pension in their old age.
§ THE FIRST LORD OF THE TREASURY (Mr. W. H. SMITH,) Strand, WestminsterHer Majesty's Government fully recognise the importance of the question. The subject has engaged the attention of many Members of Parliament; but, under all the circumstances of the case, the Government do not consider that it has yet arrived at a point at which it would be desirable to nominate a Royal Commission to inquire into it.