§ The Lord Bishop of TRURO had given Notice that he would move to resolve, That in accordance with the Church of England Assembly Powers Act, 1919, this House do direct that the Clergy Pensions Measure, 1948, be presented to His Majesty for the Royal Assent. The right reverend Prelate said: My Lords, this Measure, which has been passed by the Church Assembly and favourably reported upon by the Ecclesiastical Committee, does two things: first, it consolidates the existing law, with some Amendments, and, secondly, it introduces a new system of pensions for the clergy of the future. Before 1926, if any incumbent retired he might, under certain conditions, be granted up to one-third of the income of his benefice, so that he was in effect pensioned at the expense of his 625 successor and the parish. In that year, 1926, the Church introduced a contributory pensions scheme with a view to stopping that old bad system, and in a few years the bad old system will have died out. Under the existing scheme, a clergyman pays approximately 3 per cent. of his income, and, after forty years and on attaining the age of seventy, gets a pension of £200. If he dies before taking a pension, his contributions are either returned to his estate or convened into a pension for his wife or other dependant. This Measure brings into one code the six Measures under which the system, of which I have given the merest outline, is laid down and administered.
§ The minor Amendments which have been introduced are of a character which will bring benefit to the clergy and to iheir families. For example, some unnecessarily hampering conditions hitherto attaching to the receipt of a pension, whether contributory or not, have been swept away. In future, for instance, a clergyman in retirement will be able to undertake ecclesiastical work at a salary not exceeding £150 a year without affecting his pension. In the past he has been limited to £100. Again, any clergyman may now retire at sixty-five, if he is willing to take a much smaller pension. The income on which the pension contribution is payable is changed from that of the calendar year to the year ending March 31, which again is a convenience to the clergyman in making his return. Further, the investment powers of the Pensions Board are to be widened in conformity with the practice of other similar public bodies.
§ Lastly, under this head, an interesting and important new provision allows the Board, subject to the jurisdiction of the Charity Commissioners, to acquire properties and to administer them as homes for retired clergymen and their widows. The need for something of the kind is great. The use of one or two country houses has already been offered to the Pensions Board by the National Trust, and by private owners. All too many clergymen who ought to resign, and know it, are deterred from doing so by the fact that they have nowhere to go, and they feel that they have no chance of getting suitable accommodation. This House will no doubt wish the Pensions Board to proceed without undue delay in this important and urgent extension of its 626 work, and I would beg the Minister of Health to render all the assistance he can, should occasion arise. That is the first heading.
§ The second heading is in connexion with new law. Part III creates a system of pensions for all clergymen ordained in the future, as well as for their widows and dependants. In return for a premium of 5 per cent. of their income they will each receive pensions of £200 a year at seventy, after forty years service; a pension of £50 a year will be payable to their widows, and £25 a year for each child until it reaches the age of eighteen. These figures are pitifully small, but on the one hand it is all that the clergy can afford to pay, even when the fund is subsidized by £50,000 per annum from the Church Assembly, and £100,000 from the Ecclesiastical Commissioners. On the other hand, when the new State Insurance scheme comes in, the combined pension for a married clergyman retiring at the age of seventy will be approximately £360 a year. In the meantime, I am glad to say that, through the co-operation of the Pensions Board and the Dioceses, a clergyman retiring will not have less than £250 a year to live upon.
§ May I conclude by saying that upon this Measure receiving the approval of Parliament and the Royal Assent a full explanatory memorandum will be sent to all clergymen who will be affected by it? It will be noted that the Measure is to take effect from January 1, 1948. It is important that the new powers should become available as soon as possible, and, for technical reasons, the Measure must commence at the beginning of a year. The Measure passed all its stages in the Assembly by November, and it was then hoped that it would be possible for the Ecclesiastical Committee and Parliament to deal with it before the adjournment. That was not quite possible and, therefore, I now beg leave to move the Resolution standing in my name, to which the Ecclesiastical Committee has given its cordial assent.
§ Moved to resolve, That in accordance with the Church of England Assembly. Powers Act, 1919, this House do direet that the Clergy Pensions Measure, 1948, be presented to His Majesty for the Royal Assent.—(The Lord Bishop of Truro.)
§ On Question, Motion agreed to and ordered accordingly.