Vol. 526 No. 2
59 Ms Shortall asked the Minister for Defence if he will agree to a waiver of a payment on the basis of fairness to a person (details supplied) in Dublin 11 and the hardship which recoupment will cause; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26185/00]
As I mentioned to the Deputy in my letter dated 12 October 2000 regarding this case, the overpayment to the pensioner concerned was first brought to this Department's notice in early May 2000 by the office of the Paymaster General, which acts as the paying agent for this Department in the payment of pensions. This Department subsequently wrote to the pensioner in the matter and it was agreed with him to recover the overpayment by making fortnightly deductions of £5 from his pension. The deductions commenced in this case with effect from 20 July 2000 and will continue until such time as the amount of the overpayment is recouped in full. As my Department has an accounting responsibility to recover such overpayments, I regret to say that the question of a waiver cannot be considered.
