§ Major TASKERasked the Minister of Health whether his attention has been directed to the certainty, until an adequate safeguard is provided, of large numbers of aliens being attracted to this country by the old age pensions at 65 and upwards, and the other pensions and allowances granted by the Widows', Orphans', and Old Age Contributory Pensions Act, 1926, and to the consequent danger of correspondingly large numbers of British workers being thrown out of employment by such aliens; and whether he will give an undertaking that at the earliest possible date adequate safeguards will be provided and publicly announced, as, for example, the application to aliens of a residential qualification of 20 years in the aggregate in respect of any alien, including any alien naturalised in this country after 29th April, 1925, the date of the introduction of the Act, that term of years being the residential qualification already enacted in the Old Age Pensions Acts, 1908 to 1924, in respect of the pensions of not aliens but persons of British nationality other than natural-born British subjects?
Mr. CHAMBERLAINThe situation contemplated in this question cannot arise. I am assured by ray right938W hon. Friend the Secretary of State for the Home Department that adequate safeguards are already provided in the Aliens Restriction Order. The machinery set up by that Order makes it impossible for aliens to come to this country for the purpose of drawing old age pensions or for the purpose of taking work which could be done by British workers. The cases in which aliens are now allowed to come to this country to settle here are quite exceptional and in every such case most careful inquiries are made to make sure that the alien will not become a burden on public funds. In these circumstances it is unnecessary to impose a more stringent residential qualification' on aliens, for the purpose of the Widows', Orphans' and Old Age Contributory Pensions Act, than that applicable to British subjects, but, should the necessity at any time arise, adequate powers are given by the Act.