§ Sir WILLIAM BULLI beg to ask leave to introduce a Bill to establish a system of life annuities for persons over fifty-five. The Bill establishes a system of life pensions for persons over the age of fifty-five. As the House knows, I have taken a very deep interest in the subject of old age pensions long before the Government brought in their measure, and since then I have been looking round to see the best way of extending that measure, and I have come to the conclusion that some scheme of contributory pensions would be the best way of doing so. A great deal of the credit for the Bill is due to Sir John Filter, a merchant living in Paris, who is well known in connection with philanthropic work in that city, and in the autumn of his days has spent a great deal of time and a great deal of money in getting the Bill into shape. He has had actuarial advice with regard to its soundness from an actuarial point of view, and I believe this is a Bill which the Government could very well favourably consider. Indeed, I have hopes that the Chancellor of the Exchequer will have to take some part of it for the system of trade insurance which he is now considering. In the first place, it gives every person in the country, after the age of fifteen, a stake in the country in this way. Every boy and girl at the age of fifteen can go to the local post office and ask for a certificate, in the shape of a book, which will be handed to him or to her, as the case may be. That book will give credit on the State funds for a sum of £30. That sum will be credited in the book for the benefit of the boy or girl after the time when he or she reaches the age of fifty-five. During that time the State 2012 practically never loses sight of the boy or girl, and at various times in his career the boy will receive certain other emoluments from the State. Any money which the boy chooses to put into the book will go into that book, and the State will encourage the child by doubling the bonus up to a certain amount. In addition, when the boy passes an examination, which will not necessarily be a very difficult one—reading, writing and arithmetic, and some of the ordinary subjects, he gets an additional £5 for that. If the boy chooses to go into the Territorial Reserve Force another bonus of £5 will be given for that, and if after he has completed his time in the Territorial Reserve and chooses to become a marksman, a further sum of £5 will be paid over to the boy for that. All this, of course, is not paid over at once, but is put to his credit in this book. Anything up to £10 that he chooses to deposit as a matter of saving will be doubled. By this means an accumulated sum will be gradually collected which will enable the State at an age varying from sixty-five to fifty-five to give a pension far more adequate than the pension which is given at the present time.
I was moved to this consideration by seeing that one of the results of the present Act has been that a number of old people have been induced to leave the workhouse and go into the world. That has resulted in a sadly large percentage of people—considering the small number who have gone out—dying of starvation, and, therefore, the benefits of the Old Age Pension Act have resulted in the death of a great number of old people who would probably be far more comfortable in the Workhouse. That is briefly the scheme. The compound interest on the savings will be calculated at 4 per cent., and the pensions will be served out at the rate of 5½ per cent. between fifty-five Bind sixty-five years of age, and 11 per cent. afterwards. The husband and wife, each with a pension capital of £120, will have, under my scheme, 5s. a week during this first period, which, of course, is a great improvement on the present Act, under which they do not benefit until they are seventy, and 10s. a week in the second period, namely from sixty-five. If they should secure the maximum deposit of £400, their joint income will be 17s. a week in the first period and £1 14s. in the second. If brought into law the scheme would not, of course, abrogate the present scheme. This scheme would start next year and pensions would be payable forty years later. By that means 2013 a large sum of money will be collected by the State to meet these pensions and once for all settle the question of old age pensions for the deserving poor. I propose, therefore, that the local authorities—I am bound to put them in for the purpose of getting carriage of this Bill—will have to borrow a sum of £5,500,000 each year. By this means a sum of £220,000,000 will be collected during the course of the forty years. That will be sufficient to give the necessary amount to these various individuals who would be entitled to the pensions.
4.0 P.M.
Once the Pension Book is established it would naturally become the channel for acknowledging acts of civic virtue and consistent excellence of work. The author of the scheme aims at creating in it a sort of permanent character and testimonial, which each citizen—especially those to whom the possession of it is indispensable—may produce on occasion, and always be proud of. It would surround the initial gift of it with a certain solemnity, imprint upon it the monarch's sign manual, and foster a respect that would react on its owner's life. It will practically be a character for the lad in which everything to his credit is put down, and nothing to his discredit. It will give future citizens of this country a stake in it, and will therefore be of further use in that way. Briefly, therefore, this scheme would be universal in its application. It would allow an adequate and comfortable annuity from the age of fifty-five. It would be voluntary as to the payment of premiums, and thus allow the working classes to cease their contributions in any periods of sickness or distress. The payment of premiums would be made so attractive and advantageous as to ensure success. The scheme would be such that even the illiterate could see the progressive and gradual increase of the pension for each premium paid in or success achieved. It would contain every incentive to live an honourable, useful, and patriotic life, and would induce the working classes to obtain the education best suited to help them to gain their livelihood. The scheme should disseminate technical knowledge in every walk of life, and reward the individual for his efforts. It applies to women as well as to men, and strikes at the root of pauperism, and is not a merely palliative measure. As I have said, it would be a life record of everything to the advantage of the individual, and of nothing to his disadvantage; nor should it be a heavy burden on the 2014 present generation. The scheme should induce young men to join the Territorial Forces, and reward them for doing so; and it should make every man and woman understand that he or she, as a citizen of the Empire, has a part to perform, and that their King and their country are anxious for their welfare. With those few words I ask leave to bring in this Bill, and I hope the Government, if they have time, will very favourably consider it.
Bill to establish a system of life annuities for persons over fifty-five, ordered to be brought in by Sir William Bull, Sir Harry Samuel, Major Gastrell, Mr. Robert Pearce, Dr. Chapple, and Mr. Fell. Presented accordingly, and read the first time; to be read a second time upon Tuesday, 18th April.