FAMILY ENDOWMENT ACT
SIR,—As president of the Women's Liberal Federation, I have been asked to point out a grave injustice in the working of the Family Endowment Act. The prime motive for family allowances was, surely, to enable the mother whose means were inadequate to support her child. No means test is applied to wealthy women who receive Income Tax rebates and insurance to which they have privately contributed. On the other hand
the widow of a man insured under National Health Insurance, or the mother whose husband is an unemployed worker or the recipient of Workmen's Compensation, loses 3s. for her second and succeeding children. Before family allowances were introduced a widow drew 5s. for the first child and 3s. for every additional child. She is still entitled to 5s. for the first child (for whom family allowances do not cater) but she loses 3s. for the other children as soon as she draws the 5s. payable under the family allowance scheme, thus gaining only 2s. per head per child. If in need she must appeal to the Assistance Board for supple- mentary allowances based on a means test ; in this way once again the so hated means test has been restored This is a gross injustice which I am sure would be rectified if the public understood the position.—Yours
Previous page
