asked the Minister for Social Welfare if he will take steps to remove the anomaly that the recipient of a widow's pension can, in certain cases, have her income substantially reduced when she reaches the age of 70 and is transferred to the old age pension.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Widow's Pension Recipients.
60.
When a widow in receipt of a non-contributory pension reaches the age of 70 she does not automatically become the recipient of a non-contributory old age pension. A formal application, in accordance with the statutory provisions, for old age pension must be made and an investigation of her means carried out. In a proportion of cases this shows that her means have increased since they were last investigated for the purpose of widow's pension. In these cases a reduction in pension is inevitable and cannot be regarded as anomalous as the reduction would have occurred prior to the widow reaching age 70 had the increase in means been ascertained at an earlier date.
Furthermore, widows whose income is derived mainly from capital may qualify for a lower rate of old age pension than the rate of widow's pension which they previously enjoyed because of certain differences in the method of assessing the yearly value of capital for the two pensions. The more liberal assessment of a widow's capital was introduced in 1963 mainly to assist younger widows concerned with the expense of rearing and educating a young family. This contingency is unlikely to arise in the case of widows aged 70 and over and they are accordingly treated in the same way as other applicants for old age pension. I do not regard this as in any way anomalous.
Does the Minister not agree that the difference in the method of assessment should not really justify a reduction in income to a person reaching 70 years of age?
I have answered this question in this House three times in the last couple of years. The question here is that the old age pension system of assessment was applied entirely to widows——
It is not a fact that the contributory widow's pension may lead to a non-contributory old age pension?
The anomaly referred to in the question is due to our improving the means of assessment for widows in 1963 in order to benefit widows with dependants.
A person getting a contributory widow's pension and considering getting an old age pension at 70 years of age might expect she is entitled to a widow's contributory old age pension, but if she applies for same she may be put on the non-contributory old age pension because she has no stamps of her own and would therefore get a reduced amount. That is the cause of the trouble.
That is not the point mentioned this time. That is something I am concerned about.