The text on this page has been created from Hansard archive content, it may contain typographical errors.
2.35 pm
Mr. Alfred Morris
(Manchester, Wythenshawe)
I beg to move,
That in pursuance of the provisions of section 3 of the House of Commons Members' Fund Act 1948 and of section 2 of the House of Commons Members' Fund and Parliamentary Pensions Act 1981 the maximum annual amounts of the periodical payments which may be made out of the House of Commons Members' Fund under the House of Commons Members' Fund Act 1939, as amended and the annual rate of any payments made under section 1 of the said Act of 1981 shall be varied as from 1 April 1990, as follows:
(a) for paragraph 1 of Schedule 1 to the said Act of 1939, as amended, there shall be substituted the following paragraph:
1. The annual amount of any periodical payment made to any person by virtue of his past membership of the House of Commons shall not exceed £2,916 or such sum as, in the opinion of the Trustees, will bring his income up to £5,364 per annum whichever is the less:
Provided that if, having regard to length of service and need, the Trustees think fit, they may make a larger payment not exceeding £5,619 or such sum as, in their opinion, will bring his income up to £8,067 per annum, whichever is the less:
(b) for paragraph 2 of that Schedule there shall be substituted the following paragraph:
2. The annual amount of any periodical payment to any person by virtue of her being a widow of a past Member of the House of Commons shall not exceed £1,464 or such sum as, in the opinion of the Trustees, will bring her income up to £3,913 per annum, whichever is the less:
Provided that if, having regard to her husband's length of service or to her need, the trustees think fit, they may make a larger payment not exceeding £2,808 or such sum as, in the opinion of the Trustees, will bring her income up to £5,256 per annum, whichever is the less:
(c) in paragraph 2A of that Schedule for the words 'the annual amount of any periodical payment' to the end of the paragraph, there shall be substituted the words:
'the annual amount of any periodical payment made to any such widower shall not exceed £1,464 or such sum as, in the opinion of the Trustees, will bring his income up to £3,913 per annum, whichever is the less:
Provided that if, having regard to his wife's length of service or to his needs the Trustees think fit, they may make a larger payment not exceeding £2,808 or such sum as, in the opinion of the Trustees, will bring his income up to £5,256 per annum, whichever is the less:
(d) in section 2(1) of the said Act of 1981, for the words from the beginning to the end of paragraph (b) there shall be substituted the words:
'the annual rate of any payments made under section 1 shall be—
to ex-Members, or the widows, widowers or children of ex-Members, for"such periodical or other payments as they think fit"
That section of the Act, together with section 1 of the 1957 Act as amended, provides that in any year, for the purpose of making such payments, the House of Commons may by resolution direct that the whole or any part of the amount contributed by Members, together with up to £22,000 of the Treaury's contribution in the year, be appropriated. The total that may be appropriated under that provision is £37,600. At present, nine beneficiaries receive payments totalling £15,552 per annum under that section, and the moneys to be appropriated are needed both to continue those payments and to fund any further cases that may arise. I commend the resolutions to the House, and in doing so I pay further tribute to Jim Dobson and Tony Lewis and to their colleagues in the Fees Office, whose humane concern for the Fund's often very elderly beneficiaries is admired by all of us who see at first hand their work in administering the Fund. They are deserving of the warmest appreciation of the whole House."the purpose of alleviating special hardship".
2.41 pm
Mr. Frank Haynes
(Ashfield)
I join my right hon. Friend the Member for Manchester, Wythenshawe (Mr. Morris) in congratulating the Fees Office. Anyone referring to the Fees Office finds that everyone there, from Mr. Dobson down, is willing to help in any way that they can. My right hon. Friend's motions are partly a consequence of the very hard work put in by Mr. Jim Dobson and his staff.
Question put and agreed to.