§ 53. Dr. Kingasked the Minister of Education if he will amend the pensions regulations so as to offer a superannuated teacher who, in the present emergency, goes back to teaching greater financial inducements than at present obtain.
§ Sir E. BoyleNo, Sir. It is a principle of public service superannuation schemes generally that the income of a pensioner re-employed in his previous employment should not be greater than the salary he was receiving on retirement. It would not be right to treat teachers differently.
§ Dr. KingWill the Minister give serious consideration to the representations already made to him by one education authority that there are old teachers who 540 are willing to do part-time work in the present critical shortage of teachers, but that the amount of work they can do is limited by the factor he has just mentioned?
§ Sir E. BoyleYes, Sir. The trouble there is that the change suggested could mean that teachers would do less teaching service after 60 years of age than they do now. I will write to the hon. Gentleman explaining the difficulties that arise here.
§ Mr. M. StewartWould the Minister agree, however, that the shortage of teachers is our biggest single problem in education at present and that he ought, therefore, to look at this with a fresh mind?
§ Sir E. BoyleI think we should look at every question bearing on the shortage of teachers with as fresh a mind as possible, and we devoted some time to this point in the recent debate.