ABUSE OF DOLE

Hokitika Guardian, 28 April 1932, Page 7

ABUSE OF DOLE

MILLION A YEAR SAVED

GLARING CASKS EXPOSED. LONDON, April 23. The Public Assistance Committe of tile London County Council gives som e glaring instances of the abuse of the dole and emphasises the necessity of a means test. The committee estimates that the needs' test has already saved the Exchequer £1.000,000 a year. 'The means test was imposed by regulations framed under the Anomalies Act passed by the late Labour Government. It provides that every recipient of unemployed benefit must on the expiry of his or her standard benefit, comply with the means test before receiving payments for a further period. The cost of this supplementary benefit is met from the Unemployment Fund, but the Act appointed the Public Assistance Committee of the country as the authority to impose the test and make decisions as to sums to be allowed. The committee states that there was no ieluctaiice to app’y for transitional payments, but as soon as it was know n that each applicant would be required to give full particulars of his c reum stances and those of his household many did net persist, Large numbers of married women withdrew at this stage. Many were found to have husbands in full work, while others declined to give any information. Many glaring cases were exposed. While of) per cent, of the eases considered up to February 20 were found to bo entitled to-full transitional payments, approximately 34 per cent, of the new applicants were found not to he in need of assistance, and 16 per cet.it were found to be in need of payments of less than the maximum. “It is impossible not to draw t’:< conclusion,” states the Public Assistance Committee, “that in a large number of cases, before the operation ol the ‘mods’ test, State money had beoi draw as transitional benefit where il was not really needed, This involves no criticism of the people who drew these payments, since under the old system tlu-y were legally entitled to do so.”

Tin* first Labour Government ir 1921 made it its business to increase benefits—from lbs to lSs for men, are' from 12s to lbs for women. The succeed ill" Government reduced tile men’, benefit by a shillin'!, but raised tire* dependents' benefit by two sidlin'!*. Labour, returnin'! to power in l!2!l, raised I lie dependents’ li"i) fit by a further 2,. Nor is it only rates of benefit that are coneernod. The last Labour Cievrnmeiit abolished (lie "wen uinely seeking work" clause and Hu imposition of tin; means test w’s made a political issue at the eeneral election last October,