§ 56. Lieut.-Commander KENWORTHYasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he is aware of the very great number of genuine applicants for reparation under the fund at the disposal of the Royal Commission for Suffering and Damage by Enemy Action who are unable to get settlement owing to their claims having been lodged after the expiration of the time limit, i.e., 15th February, 1922; and whether he will take steps to meet these belated claims in cases where their genuineness could be proved?
§ The PARLIAMENTARY SECRETARY to the BOARD of TRADE (Viscount Wolmer)I have been asked to reply. I would refer to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for the Kirkdale Division of Liverpool on 19th February, of which I am sending the hon. and gallant Member a copy.
§ Lieut.-Commander KENWORTHYIn view of the large number of genuine claims which are coming to light every week in this matter, is this question being re-considered?
§ Viscount WOLMERIt does not lie with the Government, but with the Royal Commission, and they have already expressed in their first report the course which they intend to pursue.
§ Captain BERKELEYIs the Noble Lord aware that there were a great number of people involved in 1916 whose homes were wrecked, who have not only not had their claims settled, but have not even been decided?
§ Viscount WOLMERYes, I am aware of that. The Royal Commission decided to investigate the claims made up to a certain date, and there were 29,000 of those claims sent in time. The Commission is now considering other claims.
Captain BENNIs not the Government responsible for fixing the conditions under which these people, injured in the War, are compensated, and is it not a fact that many of these sailors who were travelling abroad at the time did not know about the limitation of the date, and were precluded in that way from making a claim?
§ Viscount WOLMERThe hon. Member will find the terms of reference to the Royal Commission in the Report.
§ Viscount WOLMERWe are doing all we can.
§ 58. Sir J. BUTCHERasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether, in view of the failure of the German Government to carry out their Treaty obligations to pay compensation to the victims of air raids in this country, and the fact that the assessments of the Reparation Commission for the damage caused by these air raids have been largely scaled down owing to the sums voted by Parliament for meeting this damage proving insufficient, he will consider the propriety of providing further sums for meeting the admitted claims of the victims of the air raids?
§ Mr. BALDWINThere is no such Treaty obligation as the hon. Member refers to, nor any assessment by the Reparation Commission. Parliament, however, agreed to provide a sum of £5,000,000 to be used as a fund out of which payments can be made to individuals as an act of grace on the part of His Majesty's Government. This is in addition to the insurance scheme which covered the greater number of such cases. Five million pounds was fixed as a final settlement at a time when expectations as to the reparations to be received from Germany were much higher than they are now and I fear I can hold out no prospect of its being increased.