§ Mr. Freesonasked the Minister of Pensions and National Insurance (1) whether she will give instructions to the National Assistance Board that, pending the introduction of the increases in pensions and industrial injuries benefits announced by the Chancellor of the Exchequer on 11th November, the scale rates of assistance shall be raised to the new levels immediately;
(2) whether she is aware that the National Assistance Board's present scale rates of assistance are several shillings per week below current retirement pension levels and that, to ensure that new scale rates are up to new pension levels, the increases will need to be revised upwards so that they are more than the pensions increases; and if she will take action to see that this is done.
§ Miss HerbisonAs regards the level of the new scale rates which the Board will be proposing, I would remind my hon. Friend that the Board's scales do not include rent, for which provision is made separately. The effective level of the improved scale rates will, in fact, be above that of the improved retirement pension level.
As regards the timing of the improved scale rates, I am afraid that immediate implementation would be impracticable. However, as the Chancellor of the Exchequer has already announced, the Board will, during the next few weeks, be taking special steps to ensure that the old and others who may have special difficulties get additional help. For the details, I would refer my hon. Friend to what I said on 16th November in answer to Questions by my hon. Friends the Members for Coatbridge and Airdrie (Mr. Dempsey) and Glasgow, Gorbals (Mrs. Cullen).