§ Lord CHARLES BERESFORDasked the First Lord of the Admiralty how many men there are at the present moment over the age of sixty who are eligible for the 5d. a day augmentation to their pension from the Greenwich Hospital funds; and if he will give a return showing the respective ages of men over sixty years of age who are so qualified?
§ Dr. MACNAMARAThe precise information asked for could only be ascertained by a very considerable expenditure of time and labour, but the total number of men over the age of sixty at present eligible for the age pension and not in receipt of it may be taken as about 1,300, of whom about 975 are aged sixty to sixty-five; 190, sixty-five to seventy; and 135, seventy and over. As the Noble Lord is aware, all these men are in receipt of naval life pensions, in many cases of fairly substantial amounts, and it may be taken that men of the ages referred to, whose applications for the Greenwich Hospital Age Pension have so far been unsuccessful, are either men in receipt of naval life pensions of fairly substantial amount, or, if their pensions are small, have some other means of subsistence. The circumstances of all applicants for the Greenwich Hospital Age Pension are carefully considered when selecting men for the award.