WAR GRATUITIES

Auckland Star, Volume LXXVI, Issue 200, 24 August 1945, Page 7

WAR GRATUITIES

METHOD OF PAYMENT

TERM OF THREE YEARS? ■ Parliamentary Reporter. WELLINGTON, this day. "Is the hon. member letting out a State secret?" asked an Opposition member in the House of Representative last night wnen Mr. MacFarlane (Govt., Christchurch South), mentioned during his Budget speech that he understood it was intended to spread the payment of war gratuities for overseas military service over a period of three years. Mr. MacFarlane said he thought this was in the Budget, but he was informed that the period had not been mentioned in that document. He added that discussions had taken place with the Returned Services Association and he believed that three years was the time agreed upon. He urged the Government to look into the question of debits in soldier's pay books for fines which had been inflicted for various offences. He understood that the general officer commanding frowned on moneypenalties, and he hoped the Government would consider remitting the fines inflicted for certain offences committed overseas, because allowance must be made for men under the stress of the conditions they endured.

Mr. Macdonald (Nat., Mataura): They were remitted after the last war because there were irregularities in the imposition of the fines.

Mr. MacFarlane replied that if the Minister could find that there were irregularities he hoped the fines would be wiped out.