§ Mr. PATRICK O'BRIENasked the Chief Secretary whether in June last he was aware, in connection with the stoppage of the old age pension of Mrs. Anne Butler, owing to her being in Kilkenny union hospital for a serious ailment, that the master of Kilkenny union and one of the medical officers, Dr. Buggy, were personally before the committee in respect of this and six other cases of hospital patients whose pensions were sought to be stopped, and that the committee were satisfied, on the medical officer's testimony, that these patients were suffering from various serious and definite ailments, and that the entry debility, stated by the pension officer to appear in the hospital books, had been entered only probably by routine; will he say on what grounds the Local Government Board refused, or failed to have regard to, such medical testimony; whether their decision would be favourable to Mrs. Butler's continuance of pension if they had found her to be suffering from the definite ailment testified by the doctor attending her; and whether, having regard to the position of hospital patients who are deprived of old age pensions unless paying full average cost for their maintenance, which in many cases exceeds 5s. per week, without any decision of any Court that treatment and maintenance in a union hospital is outside the exemption of medical relief in the Old Age Pensions Act, and also to the inability of 369W unions in Ireland to enforce payment or just payment of maintenance out of old age pensions in cases where hospital patients should make such contribution, he will afford facilities for having the law authoritatively ascertained in the one respect and altered in the other?
§ Mr. BIRRELLThe answer to the first portion of the question is in the affirmative. The Committee held the view stated, but it appears that the ailments referred to were of a chronic and permanent character, and there is nothing to show that the entries in the books were made as a mere matter of routine. Having regard to the nature and circumstances of the cases, the Local Government Board held, on the principles laid down in their circular letter of the 30th December, 1908, that the medical relief was subsidiary to ordinary maintenance. In these circumstances the answer to the next portion of the question is in the negative. The legality of the Board's decisions can be challenged in the Courts. I cannot hold out any hope of an amendment of the law to the effect indicated in the question.
§ Mr. LANSBURYasked the Secretary to the Treasury if he is aware that the old age pension of an old person named Emily Sail, living in the Poplar district, has been stopped by the pension officer, the reason stated for this action being that the woman received the pension three weeks too early in January last; and whether it is within the power and discretion of a pension officer to stop a pension in this manner ten months alter the local pension committee has passed it as correct?
§ Colonel LOCKWOODasked the President of the Local Government Board whether, in regard to old age pensions, the amount can be claimed from the date of the passing of the Supplementary Act, or if local pension committees have authority to fix the date of payment?
§ Mr. BURNSA local pension committee in deciding on a claim, for an old age pension cannot give retrospective effect to their decision. Under Section 5 (2) of the Old Age Pensions Act, 1908, a pension commences to accrue on the first Friday after the claim has been allowed, or in the case of a claim provisionally allowed on370W the first Friday after the day on which the claimant becomes entitled to receive the pension.