§ Sir John Tilneyasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he has received the report of the joint working party of officials of his Department and of representatives of the Overseas Service Pensioners Association; and, if so, what action he proposes to take on it.
§ Mr. WoodI have both received and had time to study the report of the joint working party, and I am arranging for copies to be placed in the Library.
The Government have re-examined the situation in the light of the report, and have decided that changes would be justified in respect of two groups of pensioners. First, there are the former members of Her Majesty's Overseas Civil Service or Colonial Service who were employed by the Government of an overseas country and who, before that country attained independence, transferred with their work to newly created quasi-governmental bodies. Officers of the Nigerian Government's Colliery Department, for instance, transferred to the Nigerian Coal Corporation. Second, there are the former HMOCS officers who were in the services of the Governments of Northern Rhodesia and Nyasaland when the former Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland was set up and who transferred with their work to the federal public service.
188WI propose that these two groups of pensioners shall be awarded British pension increases on the pensions earned by service in the employment to which they transferred, as well as and not, as at present, only on the pensions earned by their HMOCS service. I am making arrangements to introduce the appropriate authorising regulations necessary under the Pensions (Increase) Act 1971. The cost of these increases, which will be effective from 1st October 1973, is expected to be about £90,000 in this financial year and about £180,000 in a full year. I am also arranging to obtain from the appropriate overseas pensions authorities details necessary to calculate and pay the increases.
The Government consider that there is no other category of overseas pensioner, at present outside the scope of application of the British pensions increase field, which should be brought within it.