§ Mr. Harold Macmillanasked the Minister of Health what would be the additional cost of paying old age pensions of 10s. per week to the wives of contributors as from the age of 60 in all cases where the contributor himself had become qualified for pension at the age of 65 and where the marriage of the contributor and his wife had taken place five years before the date at which the contributor reached the age of 65?
§ Captain WallaceI have been asked to reply. As regards the cost of reducing to 60 the pension age for wives of contributory pensioners, I would refer my hon. Friend to the answer which I gave628W on 7th March to the hon. Member for Darwen (Mr. S. Russell). I regret that there are no data available which would enable a calculation to be made of the saving which would result from the restriction of such an extension of pensions to cases where the wife had been married to the pensioner for more than five years at the date when he attained the age of 65.