WAR PENSIONS

Press, Volume LXXXVII, Issue 26514, 31 August 1951, Page 10

WAR PENSIONS

GOVERNMENT POLICY OUTLINED MINISTER REPLIES TO MR NASH (New Zealand Press Association) INVERCARGILL, August 30. “The Labour Party leaders can at times be appallingly smug and selflaudatory on matters relating to human welfare, but the National Party has the interests of the servicemen in mind every bit as much as did members of the former Government, with this important difference, that the National Party’s handling of the servicemen’s problems is based on reality as well as on human understanding.” The Minister of Defence (Mr T. L. Macdonald) made this statement on war pensions in reply to a statement made by the Leader of the Opposition (Mr Nash) in his initial election broadcast. Since then Mr Nash’s statement has been included in a pamphlet distributed by the Labour Party to householders. “Soon after I had become more closely acquainted with the position regarding war pensions, I saw that they had been built up on a rather patchwork basis, and I concluded that the logical procedure was to have the whole position fully investigated by competent people who would devote their full time to the task.” Mr Macdonald said.

“This was in line with the request of the New Zealand Returned Services’ Association for a Royal Commission to study the matter. A commission was accordingly appointed and was asked to inquire into the justice and adequacy of the existing legislation regarding war pensions and to report on necessary amendments and alterations.

“The commission was well balanced, consisting of a magistrate, a former serviceman of World War I, who had been active in R.S.A. circles for many years, and a former serviceman of World War II.” Mr Macdonald added that the commission’s report contained several important recommendations which were agreed to bv the Government at the earliest possible opportunity. As a result. many pensioners who were unable to earr. a normal wage were placed in a, greatly improved position. An important new principle was introduced, namely, that a disability pension or a war widow’s pension should be sacrosanct: that was. it should not be taken into account when assessing social security benefits and war veterans' allowances, and also that the economic pension should be brought into line with social security benefits.

After giving examples of how the financial position of various classes of pensions had been improved, Mr Macdonald added that pensioners with children now received the universal family benefit. Orphans’ allowances and guardians’ allowances had been increased by 2s 6d a week as recommended, a special transport allowance of £26 a year for helpless, totally disabled pensioners had been approved, and amputees had been granted £6 a year in the clothing allowance. To meet cases of special hardship, a fund of £lOO,OOO had been established and would be administered by the War Pensions Board. Training of Disabled “Mr Nash also had something to say about the training of disabled civilians in the training centres of the Disabled Servicemen’s Re-establish-ment League,” said Mr Macdonald. “The present Government considered this very carefully and decided in the interests of the servicemen that this should not be done. “If civilians were trained in these centres, much stricter conditions of training would require to be imposed and it would be extremely difficult, if not impossible, to protect and continue the concessions and privileges enjoyed by servicemen trainees. I am sure that there is a general desire for those privileges and concessions to be as generous as possible. “With the introduction of civilians into the training centres the present situation would necessarily change. The majority, the civilians, would set the standard for the minority, the servicemen, and the Government did not consider that to be in the best interests of the servicemen.”