OLD-AGE PENSIONS

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 84, Issue 44, 22 February 1940, Page 10

OLD-AGE PENSIONS

WIDER SCHEME PROPOSED ' STATE ASSUMES RESPONSIBILITY [ Britit-h Official Wireless.] RUGBY, Feb. 20. I Moving the .second reading of the Old Age and Widows Pensions Bill, | the Health Minister, Mr. W. E. Elliott, •;aid in spite of much that divided the Government from the Opposition and the many hard words he felt that , both shared a certain pride in being i members of a Legislature which had not been wholly diverted from its own j task by the necessities of war. Continuing, Mr. Elliott said the/’ number of persons benefiting had | ! risen from 500,000 when the first Act j was passed to 3.000,000 to-day. While i the original cost of old age pensions! had been about £7,000,000, to-day, it |,* was roughly £100,000,000. Although al' proportion of this figure was covered by contribution, taxation provided £85,000,000. Recent events showed an almost universal desire for better conditions j for the older people, as was shown by the number of local authorities of.] all political parties which had begun j to make grants out of rates to old i age pensioners. The Bill, the Minister said, proceeded upon two principles: First, that’ an improvement be made in the gen- [ oral pensions scheme; second, that the i responsibility for pensioners be assumed by the State and be no longer shouldered by local authorities. Dealing with the Bill in detail, Mr. Elliot showed that the new proposals would cost an additional £80,000,000.