asked the Minister for Social Welfare if he will state in respect of the application of a person (details supplied) for a contributory widow's pension (a) the date on which the application was received in his Department, (b) the date of acknowledgment, (c) the details of further representations made by the applicant in the absence of any reply from the Department, (d) the date on which he received a personal letter from the applicant, (e) the cause of the delay in adjudication on this claim, and (f) when a final decision is likely to be arrived at on the matter.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Widow's Pension Application.
35.
A claim for widow's contributory pension under the Social Welfare Acts was received from the widow referred to in the question on 10th January, 1967, and an acknowledgment issued on 13th January. The insurance number quoted by the widow did not refer to her late husband and an exhaustive search of the records of my Department was necessary to ascertain the correct number. The claim was decided last week and a pension book has been sent to the widow.
The widow wrote to my Department in connection with her claim on 1st February and 3rd March, 1967. There is no record of the receipt of any letter addressed to me personally by the widow.