OLD-AGE PENSIONS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 13999, 4 September 1907, Page 5

OLD-AGE PENSIONS

A SCHEME PROPOUNDED.

Press Association—By Telegraph—Copyrighl

LONDON, September. 3.

(Received Sept. 3, at, 10.27 p.m.) Mr .Avebury Bridbrooke,- late Chit Registrar of Friendly Sooietiee, in a lette to The Times, propounds aschome for old' age pensions on a contributory basis, partly using friendly eocietics , funds, these being supplemented by the Government.

A series . of, tables dealing with, llio statistical aspect of tho old-ago.-, pension question was isued on July 16 as a Blue Book,, accompanied by a ... preliminary liiemoNutdum. In tho ..memorandum tho conclusions reached by the various, Parliamentary Committees which havo;in the past dealt ,with the question aro summarised, an<l estimates of, tho cost of tfoo'ehiof schemes'- aro given. ~ ' •■,' .■'.■: ; Tho cost of universal,old-age''pensions k placed, at.£27,503,000, apart from expenses of administration. T'ris amount would bo equivalent to a. poll tax of 12s 6d per head. As 'the, result of the natural growth' of .tho aged section of the.population, tho. cost would rise in 1921 t0£30,632,000.',' .■■"C'V Tlie cost of the scheme rocommeidee) 'by. Mr Gh'aplin'a eommittco, under .wliich. pensions, of 5s to 7s por ', week . ivbuld bo granted only to those Britidi subjects' who. had not for:2o jeare been convicted. of an offonco.or reoeivod poor relief,: who liavo an income of-not more than 10a per week, amlhavo endeavoured to tho best, of their ability'to make provisioh lor'.'themselves, is placed at £10,780,000 in tho present year and £14,878,000 by 1921, with' the'.; proviso that such aeclioHio " would bo. liable to 'be vitiated by any unforeseen inoreaaj in .the numbers pensionatla" It' is noted that' tho ago limit' of 65 "might be hard.,to maintain," and that the ' "thrift .test" would.be. a difficult ono. to enforce..'. ':'.;. ' j

Tho total number of. persons , over 65 in tho United Kingdom is ■' given, as 2,116,000, of whom, howover, about ;250,000 already draw pensions at,.a total'coat of £10,532,000. Such' existing pensions are given by tho country to. 171,815.■pqrspns who liavo served in the ;army, : navyj'and civil service; by the local authorities to rettrod; policemen; to school tcachere; to members' of the trade, '■unions iiiil i'friendly' socidtie.9 by the societies in (jueetion; and some 25,000- are provided by, charity.', ,' It is etateil' that tho dasa,'of; pensioners who havo' provided for thomsclvee 'is probably tmtrmainK in mimbera. But a, largo number of existing pensioners would comoupon th-p taxpayer under any national !Gohemo of old age peneiora,'W their incomes- would not exceed Ids per week/. , . ■■'•,:'-.T