§ Mr. GINNELLasked the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether he can say, approximately, how many old persons in Ireland certified by pension committees and by general local opinion to be more than seventy years of age and entitled to old age pensions are denied the pensions by the Local Government Board because, though always resident in Ireland, their names are not in the Census Returns; and, seeing that many are in receipt of pensions who would not be but for the evidence of those Returns, whether he will have all the cases reconsidered in which the silence of the Returns is. the sole obstacle?
§ Mr. BIRRELLThe Local Government Board are not in a position to give the information asked for in the first part of this question. It is not open to them to reconsider their decisions which are arrived at after full opportunity has been given to pensioners or claimants to furnish evidence as to their ages. Any such person who thinks he has sufficient evidence of age can make a fresh claim.
§ Mr. SCANLANasked on what grounds the old age pension of John Bourke, Culleens, county Sligo, is being withheld?
§ Mr. BIRRELLJohn Bourke's claim was disallowed by the pension sub-committee, and on appeal was also disallowed by the Local Government Board under Sub-section 2 of Section 2 of the Old Age Pensions Act as he admitted in his claim that he had lived in the United States for ten years, all or part of which came within the twenty years preceding the date of his claim.