§ 5.18 p.m.
§ THE LORD ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY moved to resolve, That in accordance with the Church of England Assembly (Powers) Act, 1919, this House do direct that the Clergy Pensions (Supplementary Pensions) Measure, 1946, be presented to His Majesty for the Royal Assent. The most reverend Primate said: My Lords, this Measure deals with one single point. I might say, by way of introduction, that in the last twenty years the Church of England has established from the very beginning a pensions fund for its clergy. Those pensions as they now exist are far from adequate, but I would say it is a very great achievement of the Church in such a large field as this to have created any system at all. There is now a pensions system which gives as its maximum pension £200 per annum. 142 We look forward to the time when the National Insurance will increase that figure, but in the meanwhile £200 is not adequate. The Pensions Board has considered carefully how it can make it less inadequate, and this Measure is designed to enable supplementary pensions to be given to retiring clergymen who apply for it. The purpose is to secure that no one retired has less than £250 per annum from all sources to live or.. The Measure empowers the Board to estimate the income of any pensioner who applies for a supplementary pension, and if his income and that of his wife from all sources is less than £250 per annum, then a Pensions Board is empowered to provide one-half of the amount by which his income falls short of £250 I say one-half, and in fact the Pensions Board could not afford to do more than that. I would add that the dioceses have agreed that they, on their part, will find their half, so that there will be that minimum of £250 secured till such time as benefits of the National Health Insurance system come into operation. The Measure limits the amount which the Pensions Board can spend in discharging this obligation to £250,000. It is actuarily calculated that the Board has that money available over the period, and can use it without affecting its prior obligations. The Measure passed, with two or three amendments only, through the Assembly without a division. I beg to move.
§ Moved to resolve, That in accordance with the Church of England Assembly (Powers) Act, 1919, this House do direct that the Clergy Pensions (Supplementary Pensions) Measure, 1946, be presented to His Majesty for the Royal Assent.—(The Lord Archbishop of Canterbury.)
§ On Question, Motion agreed to.