INCREASE IN PENSIONS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22985, 14 September 1936, Page 10

INCREASE IN PENSIONS

PAYABLE ON THURSDAY DEPARTMENT’S EXCELLENT WORK TRIBUTE BY MINISTER (Per United Press Association) WELLINGTON, Sept. 12. It will be made possible for State pensioners throughout the Dominion to receive on Thursday next the increases of pensions recently granted by Parliament. The Minister of Pensions (Mr W. E. Parry) stated to-day that approximately 60,000 pensions will be affected by the increased payments to be made by the legislation. The maximum old-age pension was increased from 17s 6d a week to £1 a week from July 1 last and to 22s 6d a week from December 1 next. The Minister said that alterations in the method of calculating th£ pension would mean that a far greater proportion of pensioners than formerly would receive the full pension. r „ . , . Among the very beneficial improvements in the law was one providing that a woman under 65 years of age would now have no deduction made from her pension in respect of her age. In the great majority of cases, he said, the deductions formerly made in respect of property which provided little or no income were now eliminated. Paying a warm tribute to the staff of "the Pensions Department in performing what he described as an almost Herculean task in getting ready so quickly the vouchers to enable the back pay of pensioners to be handed over to them on Thursday, Mr Parry said he had discovered from investigations he had made on taking up his office as Minister of Pensions at the beginning of 4he year, that the State had in its Pensions Department a staff, from the commissioner to the junior officers, which, in competence and readiness to serve in any emergency, could not be excelled. “I have nothing but praise for the work these officers have performed,” the Minister said. " There have been investigations and consequent alterations going on in the Pensions Department for some time now, and these have placed a big burden of additional work on the men and women of the department, and all of it has been carried out with a thoroughness and expedition which have earned for the staff the highest commendation. Any alteration of pension means a tremendous amount of extra work, which carries with it much overtime for the staff. The uninitiated can get a fair idea of this by understanding that there are pensioners in almost every part of the Dominion. Vouchers have to be prepared and accurately placed so that payments can be made at all places simultaneously. The new legislation was assented to by the Governor-General on September 4. By working seven days in the week recomputing and assessing arrears of the pensions’ payments as from July 1, the department is able to pay on Thursday to the pensioners the money due to them. “These men and women of the staff realise what it means to the old people to have the extra money awarded to them by Parliament, and it has been their aim to see that the pensioners receive it quickly. This is a fine spirit, which I feel will be fully appreciated.