asked the Minister of Pensions whether he will consider the desirability of transferring the issue of pensions from the pension issue office to area war pension committee offices; and whether he has information indicating that considerable saving in time and administrative cost would follow if the area offices were made immediately responsible for the issue of final weekly allowances and life pensions?

I do not think that the time has yet arrived when it would be desirable to consider the question of transferring the work of issuing pensions from the two pension issue offices in London and Scotland, where the work is being efficiently performed to 150 separate area war pension committee offices. I have no such information as that mentioned in the last part of the question, On the contrary, to transfer the purely temporary work of issuing final weekly allowances would involve additional administrative cost without any saving of time, as an elaborate system of central control would be required to prevent double payments and loss of public funds.

May I ask the right hon. Gentleman if it is not a fact that, under present arrangements, cases have been delayed from six to seven months before the final decision as to the pension has been given?

I am not aware of any delays approaching that length of time. I can only say that I go through all the questions relating to these eases with a view to avoiding such complaints, and I do not remember a time when there have been so few complaints about the Issue Office as now.