WAR PENSIONS

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2770, 13 May 1916, Page 6

WAR PENSIONS

of the shortcomings of tha Wai Pensions Act.of last .session wi'l be removed under the' Bill just introduced by .the Minister, of Defence. One of the chief complaints that has beep made against the existing Act is the conditional nature of the pension in certain circumstances. A Pension by Eight, has been a popular cry, and a reasonable one, and the demand has now been largely met. The position was that the Pensions Board, when computing the pension allowance 'of a soldier or of his dependants, could take into account any income or property which they might already possess. That is to say, a man who, by his industry and sacrifice, had been able to make some provision for his family, .could not be, certain that in the event of his death; bis dependants would receive the full pension provided by the Act; the board having the power, as stated, to exercise a discretion in the matter. This, penalty on thrift is removed under the new Bill. A disabled; soldier, or the wife and children of- one. who has met his."death on active set vice, are now assured of the-full pension by right whatever their circumstances may be. This is a proper step/ _ The State has no right to unload its responsibilities oil'to the individual, and the least it can do is to afford a definite guarantee to all who offer their services' to the country that the pension specified in the case of death or disablement will, be paid'without question. More liberal treatment, too, has been provided for parents of soldiers who may meet their death, and the law is also to be amended to extend the right to assistance to parents of disabled soldiers., Under.the exist-, ing law this latter'provision was overlooked. It is only right that a father or • mother, who' has. been deprived of. the support or assistance of a son, through his disablement on active service, should receive con* sideration where it is needed. There is also a new Vprovision for assistance being-granted to persons not dependants within the .meaning of the' Act, who may have suffered loss through the death or disablement of a soldier Furthermore, there is the promised amendment which enables pensions'.to be paid to the father, mother, wife, or children of a member of the forces who may reside outside of the Dominion. It will be seen, therefore, that the principal objections to 'the existing law' which have been the subject of public discussion will b9 removed under .the Bill now introduced. There are other amendments proposed mainly ot a minor character, and no doubt when the Bill comes up' for consideration further suggestions will be brought forward. Public sentiment on the question favours generous treatment in the matter of" War Pensions; and it is especially desi-rablo that our soldiers should bo placed in a- position. which will enable them to have an easy mind concerning the welfare lof their dependants. We have heard a great deal about the liberality 7 of the scale on which our pensions scheme is based, and there is a good deal to support the claim that it is the most liberal in the world. Australia, however, has recently seen its way .to take a step in the direction of incrca-sing the' amount of the pension allowance, and it will be interesting to see what our National Government has to say on this point when the Bill comcs forward for discussion. The financial effccts of the amendments and extensions outlined in the measure under review cannot, of course, be computed on the information available to the. public, and it is possible that the increased cost already proposed will prevent any addition to the maximum amounts now fixed in the Dominion's pension scale. _ Until the Minister supplies an estimate of these figures, which he will no doubt do during the course of the debate on the second reading of the Bill, it wonk}- be unwise to express any opinion as to the wisdom or otherwise of increasing the scale of pensions.