§ Mr. Scottasked the Secretary of State for Social Services (1) what estimate he has made of the total cost of paying a full retirement pension to those surviving non-pensioners who were over retirement age in July, 1948, and thus ineligible for the present National Insurance Scheme, and of the consequent saving in supplementary benefit;
(2) how many people who were over pensionable age in July, 1948, and thus ineligible for retirement pensions are still alive.
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§ Mr. EnnalsIt is estimated that there are about 120,000 people who were not able to become insured under the present national insurance scheme when it began in July, 1948, because they were then over pension age and were not insured under earlier schemes for contributory pensions. The immediate annual cost to the National Insurance Fund of paying them retirement pensions at the present standard rate, without taking account of any consequential charges for other classes, would be about £30 million. There would be savings of about £14 million on supplementary pensions.