The Dominion. MONDAY, MAY 11, 1908. BRITISH OLD-AGE PENSIONS.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 194, 11 May 1908, Page 6

The Dominion. MONDAY, MAY 11, 1908. BRITISH OLD-AGE PENSIONS.

Although 'Mr.Asquith has coupled his old-ago/pensions scheme" with a reduction' of, the ,'sugar duty, and a promise of a reduction of the National Debt without having' recourse'to further taxation, it is evident that his Budget must , have a profound. effect upon futuro Literal policy. The of the London Press are instructive, to-" The' Times " the chief source• of anxiety is the: readiness ,of the Government to dispose of tho ,whole'surplus in face of the. admitted requirements of the nation's naval armament,. Tho "Daily Mail," the " Standard," and the " Morning Post," predict that'the new obligations assumed by the Treasury will drive the Government into abandoning Freetrttdc.' The " Daily Chronicle " has praise for a'Budget that " strikes the .keynote of soUnd finance ■and social reform)" and the Socialistic " Daily News" looks forward to a rapid expansion of the pensions scheme through' an increase in the land and income taxes. In the face of the figures which we quoted on showing that an undiscriminating system of. pensions beginning at the age of 70 years is estimated to cost £16,302,000, and in the light of our own experience of the growth of pension expenditure, it seems'dccidedly unsafe to rely too largely on tho fact that the cost of the pensions will not be more than' £6,000,000 per annum. There are already that an attempt will be made to' have tho qualifying age lowered, the weekly allowance'increased) and the field .of eligibility widened; and it is certain, to be urged that, it is better to save the money altogether than 'to spend it upon a scheme' which will not benefit tho poOplo deserving of assistance. The Government will be required to meet and answer the argument contained in the following extract from a letter written by a workhouse inmate to the " Spectator ":

"A largo proportion (of tho dostituto) . . . "have no friends on whom thev can rely for a continuity of assistance, nnti it is impossible that _ they can support tlicmBelvos on this pittance. 'What oould I do with five shillings a week?' said an old man who had been a city clerk, ' 'It would soarooly pay my lodmng-mouoy, and I know not wnoto eleo to lftok for Holpi 1 Ho lg one of the respectable class of Inmates who

accept tlieir position with resignation and courage. Such have not been brought hero through crime or drink . . '. The benefits to bo derived from any old-ago pensions scheme will not, reach them, and yet it is this class, I ljeliovc, that tho general public aro most desirous to assist and help. As in New Zealand, so ill England, the pension roll is bound to swell enormously, and again, as. in New Zealand, the original weekly .payment will be eventually increased by tho constant pressure of its inadequacy. It is not surprising, therefore, that some of the Tariffite journals aro prophesying the doom of Freetrade. This is a prophecy which has been unceasingly dinned into the public's cars by, the " Spectator."' The issue, according to that'and other journals, is " pensions or battleships," for it is feared that unless Frcetradc. is abandoned, the finances of tho country cannot provide both. "Wc aro not miich' afraid," said tlio " Spectator "■ ;<i .November .last, " of *the< working, classes being deluded into trying to foster trade through a tariff so long as the projcct is in vacuo; but if it is hitched on to a definite scheme for expanding a system of old-age pensions already established, which the Liberals profess themselves unable to expand owing to Exchequer difficulties, we confess to" having very, grave doubts whether a large section of working 'clasß voters will not succumb to the temptation." The results of tho past ycar.'s by-eloctions show that the tariff reform movement is to strong that a struggling Exchequer may give it the last lift to victory. Should the Government, for any .reason, desire a dissolution; it will not be able to bid at tho polls against .a party that' can promise extended \ pensions from the monoy that will flow, ih to the Treasury under a tariff. Nor will; its popularity, be increased if, under the pressure of the Labour party and tho Tariffites'for more generous pensions, it withdraws its scheme 'altogether.