House of Commons Members' Fund (Hansard, 3 March 1989)

§ Mr. Alfred Morris (Manchester, Wythenshawe)
I beg to move, That in pursuance of the provisions of Section 3 of the House of Commons Members' Fund Act 1948 and Section 2 of the House of Commons Members' Fund and Parliamentary Pensions Act 1981 the maximum annual amounts of the periodical payments which may be made out of the House of Commons Members' Fund under the House of Commons Members' Fund Act 1939, as amended and the annual rate of any payments made under Section 1 of the said Act of 1981 shall be varied as from 1st April 1989 as follows: (a) for paragraph 1 of Schedule 1 to the said Act or 1939, as amended, there shall be substituted the following paragraph: (1). The anual amount of any periodical payment made to any person by virtue of his past membership of the House of Commons shall not exceed £2,709 or such sum as, in the opinion of the Trustees, will bring his income up to £4,983 per annum, whichever is the less: Provided that if, having regard to length of service and need, the Trustees think fit, they may make a larger payment not exceeding £5,220 or such sum as, in their opinion, will bring his income up to £7,494 per annum, whichever is the less: (b) for paragraph 2 of that Schedule there shall be substituted the following paragraph: 2. The annual amount of any periodical payment to any person by virtue of her being a widow of a past Member of the House of Commons shall not exceed £1,359 or such sum as, in the opinion of the Trustees, will bring her income up to £3,633 per annum, whichever is the less: Provided that if, having regard to her husband's length of service or to her need, the Trustees think fit, they may make a larger payment not exceeding £2,610 or such sum as, in the opinion of the Trustees, will bring her income up to £4,884 per annum, whichever is the less: (c) in paragraph 2A of that Schedule for the words 'the annual amount of any periodical payment' to the end of the paragraph, there shall be substituted the words: 'the annual amount of any periodical payment made to any such widower shall not exceed £1,359 or such sum as, in the opinion of the Trustees, will bring his income up to £3,633 per annum, whichever is the less: Provided that if, having regard to his wife's length of service or to his need, Trustees think fit, they may make a larger payment not exceeding £2,610 or such sum as, in the opinion of the Trustees, will bring his income up to £4,884 per annum, whichever is the less: (d) in Section 2(1) of the said Act of 1981, for the words from the beginning to the end of paragraph (b) there shall be substituted the words: 'the annual rate of any payments made under Section 1 shall be— (a) £1,578 if the payments are made to a past Member; and (b) £789 if the payments ar made to the widow or widower of a past Member.' jThe motions on the Order Paper are in the names of right hon. and hon. Members on both sides of the House who share with me the responsibility as trustees of administering the House of Commons Members" fund.
The purpose of the first resolution is to increase the levels of grants which may be made in accordance with the Members' fund legislation. Those were last revised in April 1988 and the proposal now is that they be increased from 1 April 1989 by approximately 5.9 per cent. in line with the increases approved for public service and state retirement pensions in April this year.
575 As the House is aware, pension arrangements for Members were first introduced in 1964. In the intervening years many improvements have been secured and, although much remains to be achieved, today Members of the House can at least look forward to retirement pensions, as of right, which reflect their length of service in this House. Former colleagues who left the House before 1964 had no such provision and some of them, now of advanced years, are living in straitened circumstances. The Members' fund is able, within stringent limits, to make a modest contribution to their incomes and thus help to ease financial hardship.
It will not have escaped your notice, Mr. Deputy Speaker, that the Members' fund was established 50 years ago this year to provide: grants … to persons who have been members of the House of Commons or to their widows or widowers". The House of Commons Members Fund Act 1939 required a qualifying period of at least 10 years' service, but trustees were empowered: in special circumstances to make payments even though service was less than 10 years. The Act provided that the annual grant should not exceed £150 or such lesser sum as would bring income up to £225 a year. The corresponding figures for a widow or widower were £75 and £125 a year, respectively.
Higher levels of grant and income, reflecting length of service and need, were introduced in 1961. The House of Commons Members Fund and Parliamentary Pensions Act 1981 introduced grants "as of right" to past Members who had at least 10 years' service, all before 1964, and to the widows and widowers of such past Members.

§ Mr. Allen McKay (Barnsley, West and Penistone)
As a result of the 1981 Act, how many "as of right" recipients have there been?

§ Mr. Morris
At the present time the number of recipients of payments "as of right" under the 1981 Act is as follows: ex-Members 41, widows 42. There are 83 recipients in all.
Extensive efforts have been made in recent years to identify and then to contact past Members or widows and widowers in need of help from the fund. Right hon. and hon. Members can assist the trustees by drawing to our attention the names of any past Members or widows and widowers of former Members who might benefit from the fund. Inquiries are pursued with the utmost discretion and in the strictest confidence.
I need not detain the House at length as the provisions for which we seek approval are set out in detail in the resolutions on the Order Paper. They may be summarised as follows: first, grants to past Members. Subparagraph 1(a) seeks to increase the basic annual grant for former Members to £2,709, subject to an income limit, including the grant, of £4,983. In the case of former Members with longer service and in need, the grant may be increased to a maximum of £5,220, subject to an income limit of £7,494.
Grants to the widows and widowers of past Members are dealt with in sub-paragraphs 1(b) and 1(c). They seek to increase the basic annual grant for them to £1,359, subject to an income limit, including the grant, of £3,633. In the case of longer service and where there is need, the grant may be increased to a maximum of £2,610, subject to an income limit of £4,884.
576 With regard to "as of right" payments under the 1981 Act, to which reference has already been made, sub-paragraph 1(d) seeks to increase the grants paid under the 1981 Act to £1,578 a year in the case of past Members and to £789 a year in the case of widows and widowers. The additional annual cost of those proposed increases is estimated to amount to £7,400.
The second resolution relates to the House of Commons Members' Fund Act 1948, section 4 of which authorises the trustees to make: such periodical or other payments as they think fit to past Members or the widows, widowers and children of past Members: for the purpose of alleviating special hardship Section 4 of the 1948 Act, together with section 1 of the 1957 Act, as amended, provides that in any year, for the purpose of making such payments, the House of Commons may, by resolution, direct that the whole or any part of the amount contributed by Members in that year, together with up to £22,000 of the Treasury's contribution in the year, be appropriated. The total which may be appropriated under this provision is £37,600. Currently, there are eight beneficiaries receiving grants totalling £13,100 a year under this section and the moneys to be appropriated are needed to continue these grants and to fund any further cases which may arise.
Finally, I wish to record our warm appreciation to Mr. J. L. G. Dobson and his colleagues in the Fees Office for their skilled and unstinting help to the trustees and for their always humane concern for those whom we seek to serve [HON. MEMBERS: "Hear, hear".].
I commend the resolution to the House in the confident expectation that they will receive unanimous support.