NATIONAL PROVIDENT FUND

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 249, 14 October 1908, Page 4

NATIONAL PROVIDENT FUND

The Bill drafted with a view to providing a .National Provident Fuud embodies a scheme for the establishment of a National Provident i i 'uud, contributors to which are thereby enabled and encouraged to make provision old age and sickness and for the maintenance oi tlieir widows and orphans. The fund is to be subsidised and guaranteed by the Coverninent in the same manner as the Public Service Superannuation Fund.

All persons may bei-oine contributors who are resident in New Zealand and are between sixteen and forty-live years of age, ami whose income dues not exceed €2OO a year. The contributions to the iund are weekly payments, the amount of which (J) on the age at which the contributor first joins the fund, and [£) on the amount of the pension for which he elects to contribute. Thus, fur a pension of Ids a wejft the weekly payment varies from Ud a week at the age of seventeen to 4s lid a week at the age of forty-live. Provisions are made, for the payment ol contributions by lump s uins in'advance, and for the benelit oi contributors w.'io fall into arrears. A contributor may at any time elect to withdraw from th» i fund, and is then entitled iu a return of all his contributions, less any payments already received. The benefits secured by contributors are the following:—

(1) A pension at the age of sixty, varying in amount from 10s a week to 40s a week, according to the rate of contribution.

(2) Widows' and orphans' pensions— ; if any contrioutor dies after he has been a contributor for not less than five years, leaving children under the age of fourteen years, a sum of 7s Gil a week is payable to each child until the age of fourteen, and also to the widow so long as she has any child under fourteen dependent; upon her. (3) Sickness and accident insurance— If any contributor becomes after live years incapacitated by sickness or accident for a period of more than three months while he is under the age of sixty years, and children under fourteen are dependent upon him, he receives an allowance of 7s (id a week for each of those children during the subsequent period of his incapability. The followiug is an illustration o f the operation of the. scheme: —A mail who joins the fund at the age of twentyfive and ulects to contribute at the rate of Is 3d a week, and who subsequently marries and has four children, secures for himself the following benefits—(a) A pension of 10s a week at sixty for the rest of his life; (1>) an allowance of 30s a week during any period of incapacity exceeding three months, so long as he is under sixty years of age and his children are under fourteen; (e) an allowance for his wife and children tin

his death of £1 17s Gd a week, so long as those children are under fourteen; (d) the right at any time on giving twelve months' notice to obtain a re-

fund of his contributions, less any benefits already received from the fund.