§ Lord PLATTMy Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question which stands in my name on the Order Paper.
The Question was as follows:
To ask Her Majesty's Government whether it is a fact that an ex-medical officer of the Indian Medical Service receives a pension of only £300–£400 per annum after many years service if he stays in India, but would receive a pension of about £2,500 if he were to come to England; and if so what is the justification for this disparity.
Lord ORAMMy Lords, an ex-medical officer of the Indian Medical Service would not qualify for a higher pension merely by coming to England. It is true that in certain cases Her Majesty's Government pay pension increases to former officers of the Indian Medical Service, and other Indian Services, and that in those cases an original pension of £300 to £400 a year could qualify for enhancement to about £2,500 under British pensions increase legislation; but the increases are not related to, nor limited by, the place of residence of the pensioner.
§ Lord PLATTMy Lords, I thank the noble Lord for his reply to my Question. Have Her Majesty's Government no control over the pensions paid to former IMS officers remaining in India? If a retired officer living in this country visits India and his pension is immediately reduced, do Her Majesty's Government agree that this is very serious? It prevents experienced English medical officers 154 living in this country from joining conferences in India and being of real help.
Lord ORAMMy Lords, I think that the noble Lord is under a misapprehension on this point. The pension is not lost if a person resident in this country goes abroad. The situation is that by a settlement in 1955 between the Governments of India and the United Kingdom, which included a financial settlement, the responsibilities of the respective Governments were then fixed. The noble Lord has kindly let me see the correspondence on which his Question is based. I am afraid that there is a misapprehension in one of the paragraphs of the correspondence, and I will willingly find a more suitable opportunity than Question Time to go more fully into the matter with the noble Lord.