asked the Minister for Social Welfare if social welfare officers are expected to reinvestigate all claims for the old age pension increase of 5/-.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Old Age Pension Increase Claims.
50.
Increases were granted automatically to pensioners recorded as having no means. Where a pensioner assessed with means at the last investigation subsequently claims to have no means, it is, of course, necessary to have the case re-investigated by a social welfare officer.
Does the Minister contemplate taking any measure to expedite investigation of these cases? There are thousands of them, and I am sure every Deputy is receiving letters from those people hoping something will soon be done about this 5/-. Could something be done to make it quite clear to them whether or not they can get it?
The Deputy is making a speech.
Those people are hoping for and badly need this 5/-.
I know, but this is Question Time.
Is the Minister aware that those who have been notified that they will receive it have had their pension books recalled and that many of them have not got them back for a number of weeks?
That sounds like another speech.
That refers to a different question altogether. There were questions last week about that; it does not refer to the present 5/-increase.
(Cavan): Does the Minister agree that a period of six months is a considerable period in the life of a person who is 70 years of age, that old age pensioners should not be kept waiting for that length of time, not knowing whether or not they are to get this miserable 5/-, and that they should be put out of pain with as little delay as possible?
The 5/- increase which applies to recipients with no means came into force on 1st November last.
You took damned good care to see that every recipient had no income.
That was only four months ago.
Is the Minister prepared to define "means"? Would the Minister consider 1/- a week as means?
Will the social welfare officers have to go round again and do the same investigation as they have completed?
I have answered the question which the Deputy asked.
Would the Minister answer my supplementary question?
I have stated clearly in this House how means are assessed. It is the same as has been there for the past 20 years except that the conditions governing assessment and the statutory limitation have been eased a number of times by this Government.
Except that the means test is now £2 12s where it was £2 5s last year.
There has been some improvement.