asked the Minister of Pensions whether he will consider amending the regulations whereby a woman who has divorced her husband and is receiving alimony is not entitled to a widow's pension should that husband marry again and die before her.

I regret that I see no grounds on which to amend the existing regulations on the lines suggested by the hon. Member.

Does not the Minister feel that it is a grievous injustice to the first wife which is very much in the minds of many women in the country at the moment? Is there any reason why it should not be remedied?

I do not recognise that this is a grevious injustice. The parties have been separated and there are no family ties. They are legally individual, single persons. We do provide a pension for the legitimate widow of a disabled pensioner. We provide both parties with the children's allowance, but I do not think we can extend our scheme to cover incidental relationships or past relationships of this kind.