A SOLDIER'S PENSION

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 108, 31 January 1919, Page 6

A SOLDIER'S PENSION

* STATEMENT REFUTED POSITION. P.3GARDING RETURNED MEN 1 The position in regard to the repatriation of returned soldiers and the payment of pensions was explained to tho I conference of the New Zealand Aasocia- ' tidn of "Nurserymen yesterday afternoon by,the Acting Prime Minister (Sir James ' Alien), who attended the gathering for the purpose of refuting a - statement which had been made during the course of a discussion at Wednesday's sitting. ' The remarks to which Sir James Allen [ took exception were made by Mr. G. A. Green (Auckland), in reference to tho ; payment of a returned man's pension, and were as follow .—"Half the young fehows that are kicking about are afraid to take work 'because if they do they will simply be done out of their pensions. We can get evidence in this room 10-duy, of one mail whose pension and that ot his dependants was running into something like .£5. He was. not well, and is not well to-day, but the moment hn took Svork his whole pension was cut .off. (Cries of 'Shame!') I tell you I am; ■boiling. The question of repatriation is a deop one, and unless- some scheme is brought down that will strike home and j sethe the,question, it will produce a re-1 j voiution here that will sliawe the* whole j j country." ' j ! So soon as Sir James Allen had ex-, i plained his reason for attending.the con-; ! ference, Mr. Green.rose to state the rea-j ; son why he had made the statement, lie ! j said that the case in point was that of a ■ ! married man with four children, who,i ! had seen 18 years' service in the Isnvy | and had volunteered early to'-bo to the j front, where he held the rank of ser-, geaiit-major. The man was wounded and j massed at Armeutieres, and had under-■ gone six operations. After being under treatment for about three months he was discharged from the Service, and his pension, together with the amounts paid to his wife and children, came to approximately .£5 per week. The man suf-1 fered from a clot of blood in an artery, | and was told that if he undertook any j extra strain he might drop dead at any moment. He undertook light work at a nursery, and as soon a? he was boarded he wns asked where he was employed Hβ gave tho information, and said ho was earning about JE2 ss. a week.. Thereupon the whole of the pension was. struck out, including the payments allotted to his wife nnd children. Had it not. been for the strenuous efforts, made on behalf of the man by his employer and by the Returned Soldiers Association lie would to-day have been without a pension. However, he was now earning about a couple of pounds a week on light work, and wns receiving a pension of £\ a week. The man was practically nn invalid, nnd according to the doctor's statement woiml never be right. Pensions and Earning Power.l . Sir James Allen said that he did not know about that individual case,, but if the man's name were supplied to the Commissioner of Pensions fhe case would be investigated, and he personally would ask for a full report upon the matter. It is untrue to say," remarked Sir James Allen, "that a man's pension is affected by his earning power. The aw is distinctly against it. Neither his employment nor his income nor his earning power affects his pension. In 191' ,f° lW was made perfectly clear and spewficThe intention of the Government, the Defence 'Department, arid tho Minister had been to make it perfectly clear that the iffim's pension wns assessed upon his disability and nothing else. (Hear, hoar. It had now K one forth by re«s>ii. of Hie statement made at the conference that a man's pension had been reduced because he was able to earn something. 1 want to give that a most emphatic denial," declared the Minister. Ho wanted to make it known (hat the Government, he ns Minister of Defence, and the Defence Department, were as anxious as any individual in the community, to do their dutv to the returned soldiers. 1 he pension scheme was i airly liberal, mid so far as he. knew those I who were administering the Act were carrying out the law. A returned soldier (Mr. Harper) sat on the Pensions Board in order to see that .the returned men ,1 were dealt with fairly nnd (hat no injustice was done. "I have no reason to suppose that in any one instance has the board done anything else but follow out the principles of the l»w, said .Sir James Allen. If they had not done so it may have been by mistalw, bnt, he α-new'of no Mich case. uie Minister emphasised that hu would not allow misrepresentations to go forth without refutation, and he hoped the delegates would not so awav with" the impression in the'r minds that there was anything ,to be ashamed of. In no single -nstance had it.been found that a man's ;ieusion wos reduced because'he was s:We lo earn something. "Mr. Green smd, -I am boiling/ So am I," remarked hir James Allen, amidst laughter. "I am boiling at misrepresentation, and I am going to have it put right. This individual case shall be examined right to tho bottom." (A. voice: "Quite right! ) The Repatriation Question, , Coming to the question'.of repatriation, Sir .Tiynes Allen said he was not ! going to say that their organisation wns perfect; they were all watching to see whether it could be improved. According to tho Act passed last session a man came under th'» care of the .Repatriation Department.after he was discharged. Before that he was under the care of the Discharged Soldiers' Information Department, and ft great many men had been M-tticd on the land by that Department. That policy would be continued vigorously. ; They" were very anxious indeed to settle the'soldiers on" the land, and every assistance would bo necorded them to go there. Referring to Hie resolution which had been passed by the conference the previous day, suggesting that returned soldiers should have nn opportunity of being instructed in agricultnrcil and pastoral pursuits, horticulture, nnd poultry farming, tho Minister pointed out that the Government hud had such a scheme in operation for a year or two. Every returned soldier hail been informed of the facilities provided in these respects, and provision wns made at Rnakura Slate Farm for men desiring training in special subjects, such as beekeeping, fruitfarming, nnd poultry-raising. Free board and lodging was provided on the farm,' nnd in the event of its not being available tiie Discharged Soldiers' Information Department paid the soldier a boarding allowance of £\ per week over and above his pension to enable him to live in the neighbourhood. But since the middle of 1917 only thirty-five applications had been received from soldiers who desired to bo so (mined, and only some .seven or eight applications had so fnr been received from'men who desired training in giiiernl farm work with prac- j tical farmers. Very few of the returned men seemed to wish to go into the country, but the indications wore (hat a greater number of men would in the future avail themselves of tho liberal provisions mode by (ho Government under its subsidised wages scheme. Provision was wade for tho men to receive £1 per week and found from (heir employers, and tho Government had arranged to pny ft'-subsidy of £\, half of which wns retained until the men had satisfactorily completed their training, when the accumulated portion wns paid to each man ns a bonus.; Arrangements had also been made for men (o go on experimental farms, and at Featherston the farm that had been used by the Defence Department had been made available for returned men to receive instruction in farming methods. Through the benoficence of people in the Wairarapa another farm had ftlso been mnde nvnilnble, nnd tho Government lind undertaken to erect the buildings. He did not, say that the Repatriation Act was perfect. Personally, ho did not think it was, and lm did not agree with some parts of it, ' but it had been put on the Statute Book and no time had been lost in getting the machinery set np. In this connection he stressed the importance iof setting up the local committees provided for undiir ; the Act, and h« besought the support | of the members of the Nurserymen's ■ Association to that end. It would bo ' (he duty of these committees lo iuok after the returned soldiers in their respective districts, and to see that they ' obtained employment. In attending, to ' the various details connected wilh repatriation ami t-he future welfare of I'

' the soldiers the help of the wholo comuiuility wns required. New Regulations Drafted, Sir James Allen mentioned that regulations hud been drafted and. would shdrtly be gazetted, under which sustenance, would be provided for men vbo coul not. imnostl.Y get work. J'hu suiting of sustenance would have to be watched very carefully because they did not want to encourage 'idlefieee. He could not yet divulge what amount would be allowed under this head, but men who could not honestly obtain work would receive from the Repatriation Bqart! fiu amount for sustenance until such time as they could secure employment. Then there- was a scheme by which the Departmental officer, wilh the approval of the local committee, would arrange for free tuition and the payment of the sustenance rate to men while they were being trained in technical schools, or other educational institutions, for commercial or professional. occupations, or completing the term of their apprenticeship. That was to l>e exclusive of any pensions which the men might be receiving. With the approval of the local committee, tlin Departmental officer would be able to grant to a deceased soldier's widow with children, who was in necessitous circumstances, or to an incapacitated soldier, n loan for the purchase of furniture. Where an applicant for employment wns sent by the committee to a place where he could commence work, provision was made for the payment of his second-class fare. A fter Sir James Allen had concluded, Mr. G. C. Fuche, Commissioner of Pensions, explained the system under which pensions were awarded. He, too, made it clear that in assessing the pension for a soldier the -Pensions Board did rot fako into consideration the amount of the man's income. He could state quite frankly that the board carried out (he law on this ppint. Mr. H. G. Cutler, a delegate to the conference from Auckland, stated that the man about which the remarks had been ltiade by- Mr. Green was novr time satisfied with the arrangements that nad been made. If the man had not possessed a certain amount of push he might have lost his pension altogether. Mr. Green said he would J>e the last man to misrepresent the Government or tiny Government Department :n any way. H» wished to assist the Government and those who were administering the law, and to see that everybody got fair play and justice. He had everv ctnfidence in S'r James Allen, and believed that the Government wanted do the best thing for everybody.