HC Deb 10 July 1959 vol 608 cc164-5W
Mr. Oram

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what other women's voluntary organisations, other than the Women's Voluntary Services, receive financial grants from Government Departments.

Mr. Simon

I understand that the organisations which the hon. Member has in mind are the Women's Institutes, Townswomen's Guilds and Women's Co-operative Guilds. Grants have been made as follows:

to obtain the maximum value from the invaluable years of experience possessed by many men and women but which is now lost to the nation due to the working age limits of 65 and 60, which has a moral effect on employers in relation to those over age today;

(2) in view of the increased length of life, resilience, and mental energy now possessed by so many persons above the old-age pension level, what report he has now received from the inter-departmental committee on ways of making it worth the while of certain of these highly-experienced men and women to continue in employment to their own and the nation's benefit without so materially affecting their old-age pensions.

Mr. Wood

The problems referred to by my hon. Friend were fully considered in the report of the National Advisory Committee on the Employment of Older Men and Women. I do not think that they can usefully be discussed by the inter-departmental committee whose task is to foster research into the employment of older workers and bring the results to the notice of industry.

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