ORPHANS' PENSION LIMITS

Evening Post, Volume CVI, Issue 81, 3 October 1923, Page 9

ORPHANS' PENSION LIMITS

NEED FOR A REVISION

10 THE EDITOR.

Sir,—Among the duties of hospital and charitable aid boards is that of making advances to destitute and eemidestitute persons. Amounts so advanced may be recovered at law from the beneficiaries or persons responsible for their maintenance.

A large number of those helped in this way by the Wellington Social Welfare Committee (a committee of the H. and C.A. Board) are widows with children. It sometimes happens that the total income of these people from all sources, including their pension, is insufficient to keep them, and the committee after careful -investigation makes an advance to enable the applicant to keep herself and children. _ Under the Finance Act of 1919 proviso ion is made for a pension of 7s 6d weekly for each fatherless child under 14 years of age, and an additional 7s 6d for the mother until the child" reaches that age. It is also provided that the income of the mother from all sources must be limited to 25s weekly, plus 10s for each child.

The following table shows the position m cases of widows with from one to five children: —

Erom this table it will be seen that a widow with one child is expected to keep herself and that child en a cum (including pension) of 35s per week, or £91 per year. Well, ib can't be done. In Wellington some of these poor people have to pay more than £1 a week for one room. A mother and three _ children solely dependent on orphans' pension, crowded into one room, only have 10s for food and clothing after paying £1 for rent! It is absolutely impossible for a mother with three or four young children to live on the pitiably small pension provided. Many of them, to their credit, endeavour to supplement the income by working. It may seem incredible to any sane person, but the limit of . earnings to a widow with three children. is 25s per week. -If she is helped by friends or the Social Welfare Committee,'say, to the extent of £1 per week, her earnings are limited to 5s per week. Should a woman so situated manage to go to work and earn. 25s weekly the immediate result is that the pension is cut down by 255, and she is only allowed 5s per week pension. . .

There is no imagination about this. Cases aro even now being dealt with by the Social Welfare Committee of mothers of orphans whose pensions have been so reduced.

TYPICAL CASES.

Mrs. C. ML.—Mother with four children. Pension 37s 6d per week; earnings ISs. Assistance granted by committee 25s 4d per week. Total income £3 17s 10d per week (£202 per year.) The Pensions Department reduced the pension at the rate of £33 per year. Mrs. A.L.—Widow with three children. Pension 30s per week. Assistance from Social Welfare, Committee, 29s 7d per week. Total income £2 19s 7d per week (approximately £155. per year). . In this case ; .£l2 was, taken from the pension so' that' the total income should not exceed £143.

Remember, the pension is limited to 7s 6d per week each child and mother. Any other income is earned or obtained from friends, or advanced by the H. and C.A. Board. But the law says no income from any source above 35s per week shall be allowed a widow with one child. If she works and earns more' than £1 per week her pension is reduced by deducting any surplus over 35s per week. It should be remembered that it is the. duty of the Social Welfare Committee to investigate every application for assistance and only after inquiry is.help granted. Surely when a duty is placed upon a representative cunmittee the finding of that committee should be observed. At present, although the committee finds that widows cannot keep their children on the amount to which they are limited by law and that amount is supplemented', the Pensions Department steps in and roduces the pension at the earliest possible moment. A revision of the regulations governing orphans' pension is urgent and must be made at once.

The present' circumstances are a direct incentive to a woman to sit back and not help herself even when > she could do so, because if she earns money then her children's pension is reduced in proportion to her earnings.

There is also an incentive to conceal income and obtain assistance.under false pretences. Anyway, the whole thing is bad and revision at the earliest possible moment should be undertaken.—l am, etc.,

C. H. CHAPMAN, Member Wellington Social Welfare Committee.

2nd October.

No. of Children 1 2 3 4 S Pension Week. Year. »• d. £ s. d. 15 0 39 0 0 22 6 58 10 0 30 0 78 0 0 37 0 07 10 0 45 0 117 0 0 Total Income Limit Week. Year. s. £ 35 01 45 117 55 143 65 109 . 75 195