§ Mr. Maitlandasked the Minister of Health how many persons have given notice of their desire to become contributors under the Contributory Pensions Act, 1937; the number that have been ineligible for admission; and the general nature of the causes responsible for their ineligibility?
§ Mr. ElliotUp to the 16th November, 1938, the latest date for which figures are available, 333,920 applications had been received in England, Scotland and Wales for admission to the new voluntary scheme established by the Contributory Pensions Act, 1937: of these 61,811 were found to be ineligible for admission: the main causes of failure to qualify were income and age, but in a number of cases failure was due to the residence condition and in others to the fact that the applicant or the husband of the applicant was already insured under the main scheme or was excluded from insurance because the terms of his employment provided benefits equivalent to the benefits conferred by the Act.