§ 7. Dr. Kingasked the Minister of Pensions and National Insurance the numbers of war disabled pensioners who will qualify for the new ageing allowance in February, 1957; and the estimated numbers of new and of expiring awards in a full year.
§ Mr. Boyd-CarpenterIt is estimated that about 61,000 war disablement pensioners will qualify for the allowance in February next and that in the next full year 8,000 new awards will be made. I do not feel able, for reasons which I hope the hon. Gentlemen will understand, to give any figure for the number of awards which are likely to cease to be payable during the period mentioned.
§ Dr. KingWhile congratulating the Minister on the new allowance that he has made to ageing ex-Service men, may I ask him if he is aware that the annual cost of the concession is almost offset by the number of old ex-Service men who have died? That being so, will he give serious consideration to the request of B.L.E.S.M.A. and members of the all-party Committee for improvements before he actually signs the Royal Warrant making the increase?
§ Mr. Boyd-CarpenterThe hon. Gentleman, who I know has followed this matter very closely, will recall that I gave the reasons last week why, after careful consideration, we thought it right to concentrate the sum of money available where the need is greatest, and that is, so far as this allowance is concerned, where the combination of age and the 8 assessment of disablement was highest, while dealing with the problem of the most seriously disabled younger men by improvements in the comfort allowances.
§ 8. Dr. Kingasked the Minister of Pensions and National Insurance if he will make a graduated reduction of the present qualifying age of 65 years for the new ageing allowance for war disabled pensioners to allow those who are 100 per cent., 90 per cent. or 80 per cent. disabled to qualify for the allowance at an earlier age than 65 years.
§ Mr. Boyd-CarpenterAs the hon. Gentleman may be aware, I explained in answer to Questions on 3rd December why I do not think it is possible to extend further the improvements in war pension provisions which I announced on 19th November.
§ Dr. KingThe Minister has given this afternoon the figure of 61,000 aging ex-Service men who will benefit. Is he aware that there are some 55,000 more who will not benefit and are disappointed that the age was not lower? The proposal made in the Question would at any rate bring the most deserving categories of 80 per cent., 90 per cent. and 100 per cent. aged ex-Service men into benefit a little sooner than 65. Will he give this matter sympathetic consideration?
§ Mr. Boyd-CarpenterI appreciate the point which the hon. Gentleman has made, but I think it will be well to recognise that the improvements in these allowances where no age factor arises are designed to give help to those most seriously disabled cases under 65 whom, I know, he has particularly in mind.
§ Mr. SimmonsWill the Minister, in view of the fact that this will be contained in a Royal Warrant and is therefore unlikely to be discussed in this House, consider the position again before he presents the Royal Warrant, because, as his own figures show, these men are dying at a very high rate every year and to bring the age down to 60 would, I think, meet the case much more effectively than 65? Will he also consider that the man with 90 per cent. disability gets 5s. less than the man with 100 per cent. disability, and cannot he graduate it on the basis of the proportion of disablement—this would work out at 1s. 8d. 9 at each stage—which would not leave the gap between 90 per cent. and a 100 per cent. disability?
§ Mr. Boyd-CarpenterAs to the last part of the hon. Gentleman's question, I have, of course, considered while going into this matter all the various possible ways of doing it. I do not altogether like the hon. Gentleman's proposal for exact graduation, which proposes a much more elaborate system and one more apt to be upset if any change in the assessment took place. So far as the difference between 90 per cent. and 100 per cent. is concerned, the hon. Gentleman will have in mind that 100 per cent. covers a great many cases in which the disability in total is a great deal more than 100 per cent. and some preference for 100 per cent. is desirable. On the first point, I did consider this matter—I always pay attention to what the hon. Gentleman says—and I think that these proposals should go forward in the Royal Warrant as already announced.
§ 16. Mr. Hector Hughesasked the Minister of Pensions and National Insurance if he will state, in tabular form, how many veterans of World War I are excluded from the comforts allowance, extended comforts allowance, and ageing allowance, respectively, because they have not reached the age of 65 years, giving the nature and percentage of disability in each case, and the amount of pension each such person is now entitled to.
§ Mr. Boyd-CarpenterThere is no age condition for the awards of the comforts allowances, and the remaining parts of this Question do not therefore arise so far as this allowance is concerned. As regards pensioners of the 1914 War who will not qualify for the new allowance because they have not yet reached 65, I regret that information as to the precise nature of the disability and the amount of pensions and allowances in each case is not immediately available. I will, with permission, circulate in the OFFICIAL REPORT the estimated number, analysed by pension assessment.
§ Mr. HughesAs the number of men under 65 who do not get benefit under this new scheme of the Minister's is very small, can he indicate any reason in ethics or justice why that small number of men, 10 who were war heroes in the First World War, should be excluded from the benefit?
§ Mr. Boyd-CarpenterI disagree with the hon. and learned Gentleman in saying that the number of war disabled from the First World War who are under 65 is small. The number is, of course, substantial. I would refer the hon. and learned Gentleman to the answer which I gave a few minutes ago to his hon. Friend the Member for Itchen (Dr. King).
§ Mr. ChetwyndWill the Minister look at the question of war pensioners who will be receiving this new allowance—for which they are grateful—and are in receipt of National Assistance? As I understand it, their National Assistance grant will be decreased and they will be no better off as the result of the new award.
§ Mr. Boyd-CarpenterProposals to deal with National Assistance disregards are quite separate and, as the hon. Gentleman knows, would require legislation.
§ Following is the estimated number:
| Disability assessment. | Estimated number of 1914 War pensioners under 65 years of age, and assessed at 40 per cent. or more. | |
| per cent. | ||
| 100 | … | 9,000 |
| 90 | … | 1,000 |
| 80 | … | 5,000 |
| 70 | … | 7,000 |
| 60 | … | 11,000 |
| 50 | … | 17,000 |
| 40 | … | 17,000 |
| Total | … | 67,000 |
§ 17. Mr. Wilfred Palingasked the Minister of Pensions and Nations Insurance the number of disabled ex-Service men who have sufficiently recovered from pulmonary tuberculosis to be assessed at less than 20 per cent. disability.
§ Mr. Boyd-CarpenterI regret that this information is not available, bust pensions of 20 per cent, or over for pulmonary tuberculosis were re-assessed at less than 20 per cent. in 1,980 cases in the twelve months ended 30th September, 1956.
§ Mr. PalingWhen the Minister is looking into these cases, and particularly those of men who appear to have so far recovered that their pensions are discontinued, will he have regard to the fact that 11 it is still difficult for a man who is known to have had tuberculosis to get a job, not only outside but inside the Civil Service? If one Ministry can decide that a man has sufficiently recovered not to need a pension, surely that should not be counted against him when he is applying to other Ministries for employment?
§ Mr. Boyd-CarpenterI have a lot of sympathy with the right hon. Gentleman's point of view. I do not know whether he has any particular case in mind. Even after a pension on low assessment, under 20 per cent., has been withdrawn, the welfare officers of my Department, as the right hon. Gentleman knows, will do their best to help the men concerned with such problems as employment.