§ Mr. Bryant Godman Irvineasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs why the widow of a contributor to the pension fund of Her Majesty's Overseas Civil Service receives no pension if he was over 55 years of age at the date of the marriage though still serving; and whether the disqualification is peculiar to this service.
§ Mr. WoodThe widows' and orphan's pensions schemes of overseas Governments are of an insurance type, and operate on an actuarial basis according to the age of the officer and his wife and the contributions paid. They accordingly exclude the purchase of a pension for a widow whose marriage takes place after the normal compulsory age of retirement. British public sector schemes for widows' and orphans' pensions operate on a different basis, and exclude from benefit the widows of marriages contracted after the husband's actual retirement, rather than the date on which he reaches the normal retiring age.