§ Mr. FARRELLasked the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether any complaints have reached the Local Government Board as to the attitude assumed by the pension officer stationed at Granard towards both committee and applicants there; and will he see that this gentleman is transferred to some other district?
Mr. McKINNON WOODSo far as I can ascertain, no complaints have been made against the officer in question.
§ Mr. FARRELLasked the Chief Secretary for Ireland whether, in the case of the man John Kiernan who lost three years of his old age pension owing to the false statement of a pension officer as to his age, he is aware that this man was illiterate and unable to prosecute his claim in a proper form; and, seeing that the total loss is £40 to him, will some restitution be made to compensate him for the loss?
Mr. McKINNON WOODWhen Kiernan preferred a claim to an old age pension in 1914 he produced no evidence of age, and in order to help him the pension officer arranged for a search to be made of the 1851 Census Returns, and the particulars of Kiernan's family were traced in those Returns. Unfortunately, through a clerical error, Kiernan's age as entered in the Returns was given to the officer as 4½ instead of 8 years, and as a result the grant of his pension has been delayed, though not for quite so long a period as is suggested by the hon. Member. In the special circumstances the pension money will be made good from the date from which it would have been payable if the error in transcription had not occurred. But I must add that 1445W there is no foundation whatever for the suggestion of falsehood on the part of the pension officer.