asked the Minister for Social Welfare if he will consider granting the electricity supply and special transport facilities, at present available to old age pensioners in receipt of Irish pensions, to old age pensioners in receipt of pensions from Britain or elsewhere living in this country.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Facilities for Old Age Pensioners.
40.
The schemes of free travel and free electricity apply only to persons in receipt of pensions from my Department but these include a number of persons aged 70 and over who also receive British retirement or other pensions. I am considering the question whether it would be possible to extend the scheme to other classes or groups.
Sympathetically I hope?
It is not as simple as it would appear. British pensions are payable to females at 60 and males at 65 years of age. The free travel applies to people of 70 and over. We have to ascertain the number of people in receipt of these pensions who would be 70 or over.
41.
asked the Minister for Social Welfare if pension may be stopped from an old age pensioner whose wife is earning in England because both could not live on the husband's old age pension.
In the circumstances mentioned in the question the pensioner may be assessed with half of the yearly earnings of his wife, allowance being made for her necessary expenses, including lodgings, and subject to a further deduction of up to £165 if the pensioner is the older member of the couple and the spouse is over 60. Assuming there are no other means, net earnings in a case of this type would have to exceed £500 a year before pension would be stopped.