Connaught Rangers (Pensions) Bill, 1961 ( Certified Money Bill ): Second and Subsequent Stages.

Question proposed: "That the Bill be now read a Second Time."

Aire Cosanta (Caoimhghin Ó Beoláin)

Tugann Alt I den Bhille seo udarás reachtúil do'n mhéadú de 5% i bpinsin sheirbhíse agus i bpinsin mhithreora faoi na hAchtanna um na Connaught Rangers (Pinsin) 1936 go 1960 go bhfuil éifeacht air ón lú lúnasa, 1960, agus atá a íoc ón lá sin i leith ar údarás Meastacháin Bhreise le haghaidh pinsean a ritheadh i nDáil Éireann ar an 20 Iúil, 1960.

Sé an céatadán seo an céatadán atá iomchuí de réir scála na méaduithe le haghaidh pinsinéiri seirbhíse míleata a údaraíodh ag an Aire Airgeadais, ina Ráiteas ar an gCáinaisnéis in Aibreán, 1960.

Tá foráil in Alt 2 den Bhille a údaraíonn aisiriú phinsin a chulghairmeadh fe Alt 16 den Acht Um Na Connaught Rangers (Pinsin) 1936 i gcás phinsinéir a daoradh chun priosúntachta ar feadh son teárma is sia ná trí mhí, iar chiontu i gcoir. Ceadaíonn códanna phinsean eile pinsin a chulghairmeadh ins na toscaí sin a aisiriú ach ní raibh gá go dtí seo pinsean Connaught Rangers d'aisiriú. Tá mé tar éis cás den chineál seo a thabhairt fé ndeara le déanaí agus is féidir liom déileáil leis faoin bhforáil seo.

Mura mian le haon Seanadóir tagairt a dhéanamh do phointe áirithe, ni dóigh liom gur gá a thuilleadh a rá i dtaobh an Bhille.

Section I gives statutory authority for the 5% increase in service peasions and disability pensions under the Connaught Rangers (Pensions) Acts, 1936 to 1960, which became effective from 1st August, 1960, and is being paid since that date on the authority of a Supplementary Estimate for pensions passed in Dáil Éireann on 20th July, 1960. The percentage is that appropriate in accordance with the scale of increases for military service pensioners authorised by the Minister for Finance in his Budget Statement of April, 1960.

Section 2 contains a provision to give authority to restore a pension which has been forfeited under Section 16 of the Connaught Rangers (Pensions) Act, 1936, in a case where a pensioner, convicted of a crime, has been sentenced to a term of more than three months' imprisonment. The power to restore pensions forfeited in such circumstances is contained in other pension codes but the occasion for the restoration of a Connaught Rangers pension has not hitherto arisen. Such a case has now, however, come to my attention and this provision will enable me to deal with it.

I do not think that the Bill calls for further comment, unless any Senator wishes to raise a point.

Mr. Carton

This Bill is to give statutory effect to what has been in operation since last August and therefore the House will deal with it expeditiously. It would be of interest to know how many of these men of the Connaught Rangers are still living. If the Minister can give us that information, just from the point of view of interest, I should appreciate it. There must be very few of them left and therefore it is good that the Minister is introducing this measure to restore anything these men forfeited in the years gone by. Their action so many years ago in a foreign land, under an alien flag, was brave and memorable. Therefore, this measure should go through with great expedition. I welcome it and thank the Minister for introducing it.

Dr. O'Donovan

I just want to say a few words. I know the people who say "I told you so" are not very welcome in any assembly, but I want to remind the Minister that we did tell him last year that he was not giving adequate increases in these pensions. Now the Minister is back again 12 months later and if he had given adequate increases last year, he would not be back again.

Mr. Ted O'Sullivan

I noticed in the Official Reports of the Dáil that there were 25 of these ex-Connaught Rangers still living. Everybody here, I am sure, appreciates any concession that may be given to them and we feel that when there are so few of them, they are deserving of anything we can do for them. Their conditions of service at the time were so much different from the conditions of service of those who served at home. They were thousands of miles away in a foreign land and their action was spontaneous and, in my view, anything we can do for them would only be fair.

Dr. Sheehy Skeffington

We all welcome this increase and most of us feel tempted to say what Senator O'Donovan said, that if the Minister had been a little more generous last year, it would not have been necessary to have this constant repetition of Bills. I should just like to repeat a point about the title of the Bill which I made last year. In English, it is called the "Connaught Rangers (Pensions) Bill, 1961," and the Irish title is "An Bille um na Connaught Rangers (Pinsin), 1961.” I made the point last time that it should be possible to find an Irish equivalent for “Connaught Rangers”. “Connaught” surely is Irish enough. We were told that this was a British regiment. After all, St. Patrick was a Frenchman and we do not call him Saint Patrice.

Professor Hayes

We do not call "L'Echo de Paris” the “Echo of Paris.”

Dr. Sheehy Skeffington

What do you call St. Patrick?

Professor Hayes

I have heard him called a number of things.

Mr. K. Boland

He is naturalised.

Mr. O'Quigley

This is the kind of legislation with which we are not all familiar, particularly some of us who were not here when the Connaught Rangers mutinied and I should be glad to have more information about the purpose of the Bill and why it becomes necessary. As far as the increase is concerned, it is quite clear that the rise in the cost of living is responsible for the Bill. That is in Section 1. I had a similar thought to that of Senator O'Donovan because I brought in Volume 52 of the Seanad Reports to quote to the Minister what we all heard him say on the last occasion when a variety of Bills were brought in, the Military Service Pensions Bill, the MacSwiney Pensions Bill and this kind of Bill. It is quite nonsensical to come into this House giving increases amounting to pennies and halfpennies, as was done on the last occasion, when it must be manifest to anyone familiar with the consumer price index that a much greater increase was due in November, 1959, than was given under the Bill then.

The Minister was told so but he said:

I have done as much as could be expected. I have also given in this case the increase given to other State pensioners in 1956 and I think that is as far as I could be expected to go.

Those are quotations from Volume 52, Column 771. I remember when I was growing up there was a stained glass window in the parish church in Castlebar dedicated to the Connaught Rangers. I presume that it is those who mutinied who are covered by this Bill. I should like to ask the Minister whether there are people who claim that they should be entitled to be paid compensation or pensions under these Acts who are not being paid. Would the Minister tell us how many people have made claims which have not been satisfied in the past few years? If there are people entitled to compensation under this code of legislation, nobody in the House or in the Dáil will begrudge them the relatively little money necessary to satisfy this demand.

Éamon Ó Ciosáin

It is very easy to be a prophet after the event.