I would like to draw special attention to the way in which the teachers' pensions have been treated by the particular Department responsible. No class in Ireland, I think, no other body of people in Ireland, have been treated so badly, and I think that is pretty generally admitted by those on the Government side, who are best qualified to know the position in which they are. I shall not go into details now, except to say that over 2,000 or 2,500 of these people have a pension which amounts, on the average, to only £40 per year or a little over it, and that of every class which was receiving money from public funds this is the only one which got no increase whatsoever up to 1920. Old Age Pensions were increased and the pensions of the Police were increased, but up to the year 1920 these got no increase. Now, in England and Scotland the pensions of the retired teachers were increased in 1917 and again in 1918. In 1919 the Pensions Increase Act was passed in England and this applied to Ireland. Under that Act a certain percentage of increases were given to the teachers but owing to a technicality that we need not go into now, but which the Minister for Education is fully aware of, practically all the advantages that might have come under that Act to the Irish teachers were taken away from them. This matter was brought under the notice of the Minister for Education in the Provisional Government—Deputy Finian Lynch—immediately he took over the office, and he admitted the justice of the claim that was made on the retired teachers' behalf, and even went so far as to make a public announcement, that in the near future he would have it adjusted. He was quite sincere and quite honest in that, but possibly he was speaking without his book. He had not at that time the experience which he has now; he had not come up against the Finance Department. In May, in any case, the matter was thrashed out, I understand, with the Finance Department, and a certain offer was made. It was not at all anything like what was expected and what would have met the case, but such as it was it would have been something. This technicality I speak of was overruled by the Irish Treasury. Since May nothing has been done and we are now in November, and these people have still got nothing, and I think it is necessary to urge that this matter should be attended to immediately. There is just another matter, and that is the question of the regulations which the Treasury have made, or are insisting on making in connection with teachers who are now retiring. There is a regulation under which the pension is calculated on the salary, but it seems strange that teachers who now retire cannot, as in all branches of the Civil Service, take advantage of their salary up to the date of retirement; for instance, teachers who retire in January and February must calculate their salary up to the previous 31st March only, and that is a very great grievance especially just at present, and I hope that it will be looked into.
