Outrage as soldiers’ families hit by cuts

Women whose husbands were fighting in the war were paid a separation allowance to compensate them for the loss of family income.

It comprised a portion of a soldier’s pay, which was generally matched by the government, to ensure that the soldier’s dependents were not left destitute.

For example, weekly rates announced in March 2015 allowed a wife and child of a private or corporal 17 shillings and sixpence (£53 in terms of today’s prices), while a wife with two children, whose husband was a sergeant, was entitled to 23 shillings and sixpence. For families with more than two children there was an extra two shillings for each additional child.

At a meeting of the central district committee of Stirling County Council members discussed the government practice of deducting money from the separation allowances of families who had a member in hospital.

War Office officials had indicated that it was necessary for local authorities to give them details of the soldiers’ dependents admitted to hospital, clearly for the purpose of cutting their allowance.

However, a letter was read from an outraged Mr Kerr, a JP from Belmont Cottage, Dennyloanhead, who told of the wife or partner of a soldier whose allowance was cut by four shillings because she had a child in hospital.

That deduction had been made even though she only received two shillings for that child.

Committee members learned that when the woman herself had to be admitted to hospital, her allowance – including the three shillings and sixpence from her husband’s pay – was stopped altogether.

Mr Kerr said that if the government was responsible for this kind of conduct they did not deserve to get the men to defend the country.

He thought, however, the blame lay not with the government but those acting for them. He thought such actions were “disgraceful” and said it was “difficult to keep within the bounds of parliamentary language in expressing himself ”.

Chairman E Bolton, West Plean, agreed with Mr Kerr’s remarks regarding the unfairness of the system and it was agreed that the correspondence should be forwarded to Sir George Younger MP, who sat on a committee which dealt with matters concerning the allowance.