SOME MISUNDERSTANDING.

Taranaki Daily News, 18 February 1916, Page 4

SOME MISUNDERSTANDING.

PRIME MINISTER ON WAR PENSION? (From Our Own Correspondent.) Wellington, Fob. 10. The question of war pensions was raised at the recruiting meeting held in the Town Hall on Monday night, and the Hon. A. L. Herdman said that thert appeared to be "some misunderstanding" over tlie matter. The disabled soldier received Ins pension by right, and the wife and children of a fallen, soldier were, he thought, also entitled by right to a pension; other dependents had their cases dealt with by the Pensions Board. A glance at the War Pensions Act makes it clear that the Minister's mem. ory bad failed him when he referred to. the position of wives and children urfdei the present pensions law. The widows and children do not receive their pensions "by right." Clause 12 of the Act says: "In determining the rate o* pen sion payable to any dependent of a member (of the Forces), the Board shall take into consideration the property or income from all sources of the dependent." The Pensions Board, in other words, is entitled to refuse a widow the. full pension if she is in possession of some insurance money or a home left lier bv her husband.

The position created by this clause of the Act was mentioned to ti>e Prltbe Minister (Right Hon. W. F. Massty) yes* terday by a New Zealand Times reporter, in reply, Mr. Massey said that the Pensions Board bad to be Judged by what is was actually doing, not by what it might have power to do under the strict letter of the Act. The Board was granting the full pension to widows who had some small means of their own, and lie did not think it could fairly be accused of treating the wives and children unfairly.

"The position is this: The soldier who suffers total disablement, from private to general, lias his pension provided by law," stated the Prime Minister. "But in cases of partial incapacity, where the' soldier may be able to attend to lili) business or earn some money, the Pensions Board may take the earning power into consideration. The pension is not provided as by right for tlie widow. The Board may reduce the pension where the widow is possessed of means or property. The law in this respect, whether right or wrong, was agreed to by Pan--1 lament without a single objection being raised by any member. I may say that the position of the wife is one of the points that will be considered when the amendment of the War Pensions Act is submitted to Parliament."

The suggestion has been made, continued the Prime Minister, that New Zealand's treatment of the soldiers and their dependents in the matter of pensions was less generous,than Australia'*. He had good authority for stating that although the Australian scale for widows was fixed, the payments actually made were higher in New Zealand than in the Commonwealth. That statement had been made to him and lie believed it to be correct. Evidence bearing upon the point had reached him in the form of communications from New Zealanders who had gone to Australia to enlist, under the impression that the conditions were better there, and would be glad now to come back to their own country and join the New Zealand forces. They had found that they had enlisted ih Australia under a misapprehension. "The Government and Parliament of New Zealand are not going to be behind any other country of the Empire in their treatment of the soldiers," added Mr. Massey. "We realised the sacrifices that arc being made by the men who are fighting for us on the other side of the world, and we are going to do the right thing for them and their dependents. But we want to make such prevision as can be maintained when ft period of depression comes along in future yeasr."