I move:
That a sum not exceeding £207,022 be granted to complete the sum necessary to defray the Charge which will come in course of payment during the year ending the 31st day of March, 1944, for Wound and Disability Pensions, Further Pensions and Married Pensions, Allowances and Gratuities (No. 26 of 1923, No. 12 of 1927, No. 24 of 1932, No. 15 of 1937 and No. 2 of 1941); Military Service Pensions, Allowances and Gratuities (No. 48 of 1924, No. 26 of 1932, No. 43 of 1934 and No. 33 of 1938), Pensions, Allowances and Gratuities (No. 37 of 1936); Payments in respect of Compensation for Members of the Local Defence Force (No. 28 of 1939); and for sundry contributions and expenses in respect thereof, etc.
The Estimate for the Army Pensions Vote for the Financial Year, 1943-44, provides for the payment during the year of 16,251 pensions and allowances under the various Acts and schemes at a cost of approximately £658,097. The Estimate proceeds on the basis that when it was framed there were already on payment 14,057 pensions at an annual recurring charge of £509,880, and it provides in addition for 2,194 new pensions at an estimated annual charge of £43,943. These new pensions will, however, carry arrears in a number of cases especially under the Military Service Pensions Act, 1934, and the cost of the arrears is estimated at £104,274. Thus, the recurring charge in respect of the 16,251 pensions provided for is about £553,823 a year and that figure with the arrears brings the total gross charge for the year up to £658,097.
The pensions already under pay are set out specifically under the various sub-heads of the printed Estimate, but the new pensions and arrears now provided for are as follows:—
£ |
||
95 |
Wound and disability pensions (sub-head E) costing |
14,371 |
58 |
Dependents' allowances (sub-head F) costing |
2,085 |
1,970 |
Military service pensions (sub-head I) costing |
122,141 |
43 |
Defence Forces pensions (sub-head J) costing |
6,620 |
28 |
Local Defence Force pensions (sub-head M) costing |
3,000 |
2,194 |
Pensions costing |
148,217 |
Hence pensions already under payment at £509,880 and new pensions (with arrears) at £148,217 give a gross charge for the year 1943/44 of £658,097, but from this must be deducted remissions in respect of nonpayment of pensions due to deaths and also to abatements of pensions owing to the receipt of public moneys from other sources. These remissions or deductions are estimated at £257,716, so that the net charge for pensions borne on this Estimate for the financial year is £600,381.
In addition to the cost of pensions, the Estimate also bears the cost of gratuities awarded for various reasons. There are, for instance, wound gratuities payable under the Army Pensions Acts of 1927 and 1932 to persons whose degree of disablement is less than 20 per cent. There are remarriage gratuities payable to widows in lieu of pensions when they remarry; there are married gratuities granted in certain circumstances to married officers on retirement from the forces; there are dependents' gratuities payable in certain cases to the dependents of deceased personnel, and there are finally the service gratuities payable to short service officers and other ranks on the completion of a certain number of years' service. The amount provided for all gratuities in the present Estimate is £12,265, made up as follows:—
£ |
|
Wound gratuities (sub-head E) |
1,000 |
Remarriage gratuities (sub-head F) |
140 |
Dependents' gratuities (sub-head F) |
225 |
Married officers' gratuities (sub-head J) |
9,000 |
Service gratuities (sub-head J) |
1,900 |
Total |
12,265 |
Awards in respect of death or injury sustained by members of the Local Defence Force have hitherto been administered by the Department of Finance on reports made by the Army Pensions Board. As and from April 1st, 1943, however, the administration was taken over by the Department of Defence, and, consequently, this feature appears for the first time in the Army Pensions Estimate under sub-head N. The figures of £1,000 and £200 which appear under that heading for the year 1942-43 have been transferred from Vote 16 simply for the purpose of comparison with the figures inserted for 1943-44. The increase from £1,200 to £3,480 is entirely due to the number of cases which are expected to qualify for payment during the Financial Year.
Of the three statutory boards which have been dealing with Army Pensions, only one, the Army Pensions Board, will be on a full-time basis during the year. The Military Service Registration Board, having finished its work, has disappeared completely from the Estimate. The referee and advisory committee has almost completed its work, but owing to appeals against awards made, it is necessary to make provision for the part-time employment of its members, and of a small skeleton administrative staff during the year. The Estimate for this Service, accordingly, shows a decrease of £5,680 for the year. The Army Pensions Board has almost completed its work under the various Acts dealing with disablement, but as was pointed out last year, the board, in addition to dealing with the Army Pensions Acts, has also to deal with the various compensation schemes made under the Emergency Powers Orders. Moreover, the Army Pensions Bill, 1943, has become law, and that alone necessitates the full-time employment of its members during the year. The total cost, therefore, of the statutory bodies. during the year is £3,874, a reduction of £6,293 in the corresponding figure of last year.
The remainder of the Estimate deals with what may be termed incidentals. They are of a varied nature and include:—
Surgical and medical appliances (sub-head G) |
£300 |
Hospital treatment (sub-head H) |
1,000 |
Miscellaneous expenses (sub-heads L and N) |
702 |
Travelling and subsistence allowances of applicants |
2,000 |
Total |
£4,002 |
Hence the Estimate for Anny Pensions for the year 1943-44 may be summed up under the following four heads.
Cost of pension awards (including arrears) |
£ 600,381 |
Cost of gratuities |
12,265 |
Cost of administrative statutory bodies |
3,874 |
Cost of incidentals |
4,002 |
Total |
£620,522 |