§ Mr. WILKIEasked the Minister of Pensions whether Mrs. Annie Whittet, 70, Constable Street, Dundee, widow of Private William Whittet, No. 202,239, late 4th Black Watch, has been awarded a pension of 5s. 6d. weekly; whether her husband enlisted in December, 1914, and was dicharged on pension in November, 191V, as being no longer physically fit for war service; whether during his service he received a shrapnel wound in the face, a bullet wound in the thigh, was gassed, and in addition underwent three operations for deafness contracted or aggravated by service; whether the doctor who attended him in his terminal illness has certified that his previous history of wounds and of several operations for 584W deafness had an unfavourable effect upon his recovery from pneumonia; whether Mrs. Whittet is unable to work and has been left with two young children, the elder two years and nine months and the younger nine months old, and has been forced to apply for parochial relief; and whether he purposes raising the award in this case and taking steps to deal in a more humane manner with widows of ex-service men?
§ Major TRYONPrivate Whittet was discharged in November, 1917, on account of deafness, the result of ear disease which had existed from boyhood, but was aggravated by military service. He died nearly two years later from acute pneumonia. There is no record in his military papers of his having been wounded or gassed, and it may further be pointed out that during the entire period between discharge and death he was regularly in work. The medical advisers of the Ministry are unable to regard the pneumonia as having been contracted or commenced on service, or aggravated on such service. In these circumstances his widow is not entitled to the award of pension under Article 11 of the Royal Warrant, and she was accordingly granted the reduced pension under Article 17. She has been informed that if she is dissatisfied with the decision she has a right of appeal through her Local War Pensions Committee to the Pensions Appeal Tribunal.