PENSIONS FOR FAMILIES.

Taranaki Daily News, 24 June 1922, Page 10

PENSIONS FOR FAMILIES.

PROPOSAL IN AUSTRALIA. It is understood that a Bill has been drafted and will be presented to Parliament for «enactment during the forthcoming session which will result in the pensioning of' large faaniljes where the income of the wage-earner is insufficient to enable him to rear his children with a reasonable standard of comfort. The Bill in addition provides for the relief of distress and the amalgamation of the State Children’s and the Chief Secretary’s Relief Departments. It will add at least £250,000 to the expenditure upon relief, but it is expected to alleviate the acute hardship caused to many by the present economic conditions whereby the basic living wage is computed upon the needs of a man, his wife, and two children. The Bill will deal principally with those whose earnings do not exceed the amount of the basic wage, but, in addition, relief may be given to breadwinners who are in receipt of more than the living wage. The amount will depend entirely upon the obligations of parents and their total income. That is to say, a man may receive £6 per week and own his own house, yet under the Bill he will be entitled to assistance if his family is so large that he cannot keep it in a reasonably decent state. The' measure will not result in any endowment of children; to that policy the Government is absolutely opposed. The pensions provided for by the Bill, however, will be payable to all those parents who through no fault of their own are genuinely unable to support their families. It is really an extension of the present pension system for widows and children. The scale of allowances will vary according to the circumstances of the case and the needs o-f the parents, and provision will be mad- in the Bill to I keep the expenditure from any of. nolitical tawperiugi