§ Mr. Arthur Lewisasked the Prime Minister whether, in view of his stated policy concerning early voluntary retirement, he will take steps for this procedure to be universally implemented, and in particular within the public services so as to assist in reducing the unemployment figure.
§ Mr. BoothI have been asked to reply.
In the assisted areas the job release scheme run by my Department does assist people in their last year before reaching statutory pensionable age—65 for men, 60 for women—to give up their job and make way for an unemployed younger person. Within the public sector, the age of retirement is a matter for negotiation between employers and employees.