asked the Minister for Social Welfare if, in view of the fact that Mrs. Kate Doran, Coolatore, Ferns, County Wexford, was in receipt of a blind pension for 13 years, he will state why payment of the pension ceased in recent months.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - County Wexford Blind Pension.
Mrs. Doran was granted a blind pension of 7/- a week in 1933, which was increased to 12/6 a week, under the Social Welfare Act, 1948, as from January, 1949. She applied for an increase in April, 1951, and her circumstances were reinvestigated. It was found that her yearly means, consisting of half her husband's earnings, exceeded the then statutory limit (£52 5s.) for entitlement to blind pension. A question as to her continued eligibility for pension had to be raised and, by decision given on the 10th August, 1951, the blind pension was revoked by the local pension committee.
Should there be any change in Mrs. Doran's circumstances, or in any event after six months have elapsed from the date of the pension committee's decision, it will be open to her to make a fresh claim to blind pension.
I should add that the statutory means limit has been raised to £65 5s. under the Social Welfare Act, 1951.
The Minister will surely agree that it is a severe loss to this woman and her family to be deprived of her pension inasmuch as she has been receiving it, not for 13 years as I stated in my question, but for 18 years. It appears strange that if the woman's husband was working for all these years somebody should now discover after 18 years that she is not entitled to the pension. It is a rather funny situation if that is discovered only after 18 years.
It would appear from the file I have here that on her original application her husband's wages, when divided into half, did not reach the means limit. It would appear further that her husband's wages have increased in the meantime.
He must have had very small wages indeed when she got a pension of 7/- in the first instance.
They were very small. They were under £1.
They must have increased very much if she is now debarred from getting the pension.
They were under £1 when first investigated and they were £3 10s. 0d. on the last investigation.