asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many recipients of national retirement pensions or of war pensions living abroad have their pensions paid direct to banks or National Giro for credit to their accounts; and how the total cost of the method of payment compares with the provision of an order book encashable at post offices.
Some 30,000 national insurance pensioners and 1,700 war pensioners living abroad have their pensions paid by payable order sent direct to their
available from his Department, stating against each ( a the current level of such benefit for a suitable recipient, ( b) the level in 1975 for such a recipient and ( c) the percentage increase between the two.
The social security benefits listed below are the standard rates:bank or National Giro. The total cost of this method of payment for these pensioners is of the order of £260,000—exeluding postage—and would be the same for payment by payable order sent to the pensioners' private addresses. Payment by order book encashable at post offices is not possible for pensioners living abroad.