400,000, CHILDLESS WAR WIVES

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 89, 9 January 1919, Page 6

400,000, CHILDLESS WAR WIVES

■ —; —♦ — BRITISH BONUS ON PENSIONS. ■During a discussion in tho House of Commons on war pensions and, allowances recently, Mr. Gi N; Barries, member of the War Cabinet, promised a rectification of somd of the abuses of which complaint had been made. As to the childless wives, he did not agree with some of the critics. There were, he said, about ■100,l!00 childless wives on the list, and of those some 390,000 had married during the war. They had not set up homes; They received 2s. 6d. a week as separation allowance in addition to whatever they coukl earn. An «tra 6s.- Gd. would be given to those who did not earn their living, and ho held °<it no hope of an increase of that sum. The increased cost of living since vTuly was 13' per cent., and the Government had put the/ January advance at more than'that proportion: Ho would nsk iUr.-Bonar Law, the Chancellor of'the Exchequer, on his Teturn to Emtliiiul, to make those advances retrospectivn. ?o as to give the women who were in debt after a hard struggle a Christmns-box and a good'start for the New Year. "I will put that before the. Chancellor, with all tho forco 1 can." (Hear, hear.) Mr. Barnea added that an arrangement is being considered whereby tho widow with three children will be no worse off than the wife with three children—the widow, under the preent scalp, receiving 29«. 7d. a week and SGs. Gd. A Fchemo was being put' forward for a bounty or bniiun'on'the top of the ppnsion.i at a flat rate, to compensate for tho increased cost of living. (Cheers.)