§ 13. Mr. Houghtonasked the Minister of Pensions and National Insurance whether he will arrange for all married women contributors under the National Insurance scheme who are approaching retirement age to be informed when they have completed the average number of contributions to qualify for the full pension on retirement so that they may avoid paying excess contributions.
§ Mr. Boyd-CarpenterArrangements are already in force whereby any married woman who inquires of her local Pensions and National Insurance office may be advised as to the earliest date on which she can expect to have completed the necessary number of contributions.
§ Mr. HoughtonIs the Minister aware that, when a married woman in my constituency inquired about this, she was, unhappily, misinformed by the local office? She then brought her problem to me. I could not find the answer right away, and not until I wrote to the Ministry did we get the correct information. That, I suggest, shows that this sort of information should be given without inquiries having to be made and in a form which puts any doubt beyond question as to how a married woman in this situation stands regarding her contributions.
§ Mr. Boyd-CarpenterI am aware of the particular case about which the hon. Gentleman was in correspondence with my hon. Friend. On the general issue, married women, with their option to come in or out of the scheme and their freedom from compulsion to contribute, are already in a favoured position. It is doubtful whether it would be right, considering the extra administrative costs, to do what the hon. Gentleman suggests in all cases, whether asked for or not.