Old Age Pensions Act 1908
Encyclopedia
The Old-Age Pensions Act 1908 is an Act
of Parliament
of the United Kingdom
, passed in 1908. The Act is often regarded as one of the foundations of modern social welfare in the United Kingdom and forms part of the wider social welfare reforms
of the Liberal
Government of 1906-1914.
for persons over the age of 70. It was enacted in January 1909 and paid a weekly pension of 5s a week (7s 6d for married couples) to half a million who were eligible. The level of benefit was deliberately set low to encourage workers to also make their own provision for retirement. In order to be eligible, they had to be earning less than £21.10s. per year, and had to pass a 'character test'; only those with a 'good character' could receive the pensions.
Also excluded were those in receipt of poor relief, ‘lunatics’ in asylums, persons sentenced to prison for ten years after their release, persons convicted of drunkenness (at the discretion of the court), and any person who was guilty of ‘habitual failure to work’ according to one’s ability.
On 31 December 1908 a total of 596,038 pensions had been granted:
.
State pensions acts
Private pensions acts
Act of Parliament
An Act of Parliament is a statute enacted as primary legislation by a national or sub-national parliament. In the Republic of Ireland the term Act of the Oireachtas is used, and in the United States the term Act of Congress is used.In Commonwealth countries, the term is used both in a narrow...
of Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
of the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, passed in 1908. The Act is often regarded as one of the foundations of modern social welfare in the United Kingdom and forms part of the wider social welfare reforms
Liberal reforms
The Liberal welfare reforms were acts of social legislation passed by the British Liberal Party after the 1906 General Election. It has been argued that this legislation shows the emergence of the modern welfare state in the UK. They shifted their outlook from a laissez-faire system to a more...
of the Liberal
Liberal Party (UK)
The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
Government of 1906-1914.
Outline
The Act provided for a non-contributory old age pensionPension
In general, a pension is an arrangement to provide people with an income when they are no longer earning a regular income from employment. Pensions should not be confused with severance pay; the former is paid in regular installments, while the latter is paid in one lump sum.The terms retirement...
for persons over the age of 70. It was enacted in January 1909 and paid a weekly pension of 5s a week (7s 6d for married couples) to half a million who were eligible. The level of benefit was deliberately set low to encourage workers to also make their own provision for retirement. In order to be eligible, they had to be earning less than £21.10s. per year, and had to pass a 'character test'; only those with a 'good character' could receive the pensions.
Also excluded were those in receipt of poor relief, ‘lunatics’ in asylums, persons sentenced to prison for ten years after their release, persons convicted of drunkenness (at the discretion of the court), and any person who was guilty of ‘habitual failure to work’ according to one’s ability.
Implementation
The pension was due to be paid from 1 January 1909 and those eligible had to apply to a Local Pension Committee starting in October 1908 set up by the county councils. Those eligible had to be over the age of 70, must have been a British subject for 20 years and have resided in the United Kingdom. It was open to both men and women, both married and single, and their yearly means must not exceed £31 10s. Forms for applicants were available from end of September 1908 and had to be returned to the Postmaster of the Post Office that will pay the individual's benefit. The claims were assessed by the Pension Officers and then sent to the Local Pension Committee for approval.On 31 December 1908 a total of 596,038 pensions had been granted:
| Rate | England (excluding Monmouthshire) |
Wales (including Monmouthshire) |
Scotland | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5s | 297332 | 19691 | 60787 | 161578 |
| 4s | 15178 | 864 | 1443 | 3101 |
| 3s | 14830 | 805 | 1488 | 3131 |
| 2s | 7185 | 362 | 656 | 1628 |
| 1s | 4423 | 234 | 395 | 927 |
| Totals | 338948 | 21956 | 64769 | 170365 |
Effects
Initially, most of the recipients of the pension benefit were women. In order to remove any stigma in receiving the benefit, the scheme was administered by the Post Office rather than the existing social welfare agencies such as the parish or Poor LawPoor Law
The English Poor Laws were a system of poor relief which existed in England and Wales that developed out of late-medieval and Tudor-era laws before being codified in 1587–98...
.
See also
- National Insurance Act 1911National Insurance Act 1911The National Insurance Act 1911 is an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom. The Act is often regarded as one of the foundations of modern social welfare in the United Kingdom and forms part of the wider social welfare reforms of the Liberal Government of 1906-1914...
- Pension provision in the United Kingdom
State pensions acts
- Widows ‘Orphans’ and Old Age Contributory Pensions Act 1925
- National Insurance Act 1946National Insurance Act 1946The National Insurance Act 1946 was a British Act of Parliament which established a comprehensive system of social security throughout the United Kingdom...
- National Insurance Act 1965
- Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992The Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992 is the primary legislation concerning the state retirement provision, accident insurance, statutory sick pay and maternity pay in the United Kingdom.-Contents:*Part I Contributions...
(c 4)
Private pensions acts
- Superannuation and other Funds (Validation) Act 1992
- Pension Schemes Act 1993Pension Schemes Act 1993The Pension Schemes Act 1993 is a United Kingdom Act of Parliament that concerns the administration of occupational pensions.-Background:...
- Pensions Act 1995Pensions Act 1995The Pensions Act 1995 is a piece of United Kingdom legislation to improve the running of pension schemes.-Background:Following the death of Robert Maxwell it became clear that he had embezzled a large amount of money from the pension fund of Mirror Group Newspapers...
- Pensions Act 2004Pensions Act 2004The Pensions Act 2004 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom to improve the running of pension schemes.-Background:In the years following the introduction of the Pensions Act 1995, it was widely perceived that it was failing to offer the protection to pension scheme members that had...
- Pensions Act 2007Pensions Act 2007The Pensions Act 2007 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It incorporated the main findings of the all-party Pensions Commission in 2006 as set out in the white paper Security in retirement: towards a new pension system published in May 2006.The key provisions were:#Reduction of the...
- Pensions Act 2008Pensions Act 2008The Pensions Act 2008 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The principal change brought about by the Act is that all workers will have to opt out of an occupational pension plan of their employer, rather than opt in...