§ Captain BOWYERasked the President of the Board of Education to what extent The Teachers (Superannuation) Act, 1918, has diminished the supply of teaching power in the schools, and increased the I cost of teachers' superannuation by re- 693W ducing the length of service qualifying for pension, and by giving teachers the option to retire at an earlier age on pensions larger than those for which they contracted under the Acts of 1898 and 1912?
§ Mr. FISHERI do not think the Act has adversely affected the quantity or quality of school staffs. The number of retiring pensions awarded under the School Teachers (Superannuation) Act, 1918, to teachers under the age of 65 up to the 31st December, 1921, was 3,113. The minimum period of service required for a pension on age under the Elementary School Teachers (Superannuation) Acts, 1S98 and 1912, was half the period between certification and attainment of the age of 65, and the requirement of 30 years' qualifying service imposed by the Act of 1918 upon teachers, other than those to whom the Act of 1898 applied, is substantially longer than this. It was not a condition of the Acts of 1898 and 1912 that a teacher should remain in service until the age of 65.