§ MR. VINCENT KENNEDY (Cavan, W.)To ask the President of the Local Government Board if he will state whether pension officers are instructed to inquire from applicants whether they have been in receipt of pensions from any source during the current and previous three years; has he as a result discovered that railway companies have insisted on their former employees, whom they had pensioned, applying for the pension; and will steps be taken to deal with this state of affairs.
(Answered by Mr. Lloyd-George.) A pension received by a claimant would be a part of his "means" within the meaning of the Act and the same inquiries have to be made as are made with regard to other sources of income, but they would not as a rule extend over a longer period than the twelve months immediately preceding the application. I am aware that in some cases railway companies and other employers paying voluntary allowances to former employees have, in view of the fact that such employees are qualified to receive old-age pensions, discontinued or reduced their allowances, but, as such action would appear to be within the discretion of the person or company making the allowance, I am not in a position to take any action. I have no reason to suppose that such steps have been taken as 2356 a result of inquiries made of the companies by pension officers.