Mr. EDMUND HARVEYasked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury whether old age pensions are awarded only as from the date at which the applicant can furnish proof of age, or whether, when documentary proof is subsequently furnished, the pension is granted as from the date of application; and whether any special consideration can be allowed in cases where the delay in furnishing documentary evidence of age is caused not by the negligence of the applicant but by other causes?
§ Mr. W. GRAHAMA person who desires to obtain an old age pension is required to show that he has attained the statutory age of 70 and otherwise to establish his title to a pension. If he has no evidence of age, assistance is given to him by search of registers of birth, etc. Where a claim is allowed, the pension is payable under the law as from the date of receipt of the claim by the pension officer or the date on which the claimant first becomes entitled to the pension, whichever is the later. Where a claim is disallowed, the decision is under the law final and conclusive for purposes of that claim. In the event of a subsequent claim being allowed, there is no power to pay the pension for any period before the date of receipt of the fresh claim.