DISABLED SERVICE PERSONNEL

Press, Volume LXXXII, Issue 24902, 15 June 1946, Page 8

DISABLED SERVICE PERSONNEL

SUBSIDY ON LEAGUE TRAINING (P.A.) WELLINGTON, June 14. “*niat headquarters urged the Rehabilitation Board to cease insisting on any definite percentage of disability before approving of subsidised training with the league.” was a remit which received much discussion before the annual conference yesterday of the Disabled Servicemen’s Re-establish-ment League. The remit was not approved. Mr A. S. Rusden (Christchurch) who spoke for •'the remit, read from a rehabilitation circular in which it was stated that “ex-servicemen whose war disability is 40 per cent, or more are clearly eligible for training in the league. Where the war disability is less than 40 per cent., but special circumstances suggest that admission is in the ex-serviceman’s best interest, the full circumstances (with the league’s liaison committee’s recommendations) should be forwarded to the head office.” Mr Rusden said that it was thought that the term 40 per cent, was a bar to suitable men being accepted for training in the league. Would it riot be better to decide the normal “employability” of a man by people in definite touch with the man through the liaison committee? he asked. “With the experience that is being gained,” he said. “I would suggest that more attention should be paid to the league liaison committee. It would not mean that recommendations by Wellington would be superseded. The general secretary (Mr W. E. Leadley) said that a misunderstanding had arisen through the rules being taken too literally. In his exoerience. no cases had been rejected unless good and sufficient reasons had been given