Vol. 489 No. 6
233 Mr. McGrath asked the Minister for Defence the procedure, if any, in place whereby former members of the Defence Forces discharged on medical grounds are assessed for disability pensions from his Department; if there is a system to prioritise these applications; if former soldiers who availed of the voluntary early retirement package are eligible for disability pensions; and if processing of these applications are given priority over other applicants. [8763/98]
Under the Army Pensons Acts a former member of the Permanent Defence Force may, following retirement and regardless of the reason for retirement, apply to the Department of Defence for a disability pension in respect of permanent disablement due to a wound or an injury attributable to military service, whether at home or abroad, or to a disease attributable to or aggravated by overseas service with a United Nations force. Retirement on medical grounds does not confer an automatic entitlement to a pension.
Applications are dealt with in the order in which they are received in the Department and are referred to the Army Pensions Board, which is the statutory body appointed under the Army Pensions Acts to investigate and report on disability pension applications. The processing time for disability pension applications varies considerably in individual cases depending on a number of factors such as the nature of the disablement claimed for, the circumstances giving rise to the applicant's disablement, the availability of witness statements and whether the Army Pensions Board has to consult outside medical specialists.
