§ Mr. Beaumontasked the Minister of Pensions whether he is aware that, whereas a disabled ex-service man who is unemployed and in receipt of unemployment insurance benefit can be admitted to a Ministry of Pensions hospital and receive full treatment allowances, a disabled ex-service man who is unemployed and in receipt of unemployment assistance benefit is not granted these allowances when admitted into hospital; and whether he will state the reason for this differentiation?
§ Mr. RamsbothamThe full allowances provided by the Royal Warrant are designed to compensate for the earnings which the patient has lost in consequence of undergoing a prescribed course of treatment, and may be paid where the man is, at the commencement, found to be no more than temporarily out of employment. In other cases, where this condition is not satisfied and the patient is in receipt of either unemployment benefit or assistance before treatment, supplementary grants are payable which substantially meet the loss of income suffered by their families.