Treasury Minister Alfred Cannan has apologised after pensioners were threatened with having their money withheld if they did not fill in a form.

More than 15,000 pensioners were sent a document that required a ’declaration of continuing entitlement to retirement pensions’ to be filled out and returned - and witnessed.

It was accompanied by the warning: ’ â?¦ if this form is not returned within one month of the above date of issue payment of your pension will have to be suspended’.

Mr Cannan this week gave an assurance that would not happen.

He told the House of Keys: ’I will apologise to anybody who felt that the document was perhaps a little too direct in its approach, and we will ensure that we do take into account that those perhaps more elderly and receiving pensions do need the reassurance that we are going to continue to pay their pensions.’

Mr Cannan gave the assurance after it was raised in the House of Keys by Jason Moorhouse (Arbory, Castletown and Malew).

’Does the minister think the language used in the letter is appropriate when dealing with some of the most vulnerable individuals of our society?’ Mr Moorhouse asked.

Mr Cannan admitted there ’could be some improvement’ to the wording.

Mr Moorhouse asked Mr Cannan to extend the deadline to return the form - November 17 - to January 5.

Mr Cannan pledged that ’no pensions will be stopped’ tomorrow (Saturday) where a form has not been returned, so the Treasury did not need to extend the deadline.

About 13% - 2,047 - of forms were unreturned, said Mr Cannan. Written reminders would be sent out. If there was still no response, ’reasonable’ further steps would be taken to make contact.

Only after those efforts - or a pensioner refused to confirm their continuing entitlement by returning the form - would a suspension of payments be considered.

The document was sent out to the 15,724 pensioners who receive their state pension by bank transfer - about 80% of all pensioners.

Mr Cannan said: ’Given the potential longevity of claims and considerable sums involved, this exercise guards against the possibility of someone continuing to draw a state pension in respect of a pensioner after their death, and pensioners moving away from the island and forgetting, or deliberately neglecting to inform us of their change of address.’

In response to a further question, Mr Cannan said that a witness service could be provided at the customer counter at Markwell House or the social security office in Cummal Moar for those pensioners who found difficulty in finding one to counter-sign their form.

They will need to bring with them a utility bill and photographic identification.

Mr Moorhouse told the Manx Independent he was pleased with the response he got from Mr Cannan.

’I go to a lot of coffee mornings and I have been amazed at the number of people who were concerned,’ he said. ’We hear so much about scams and this looks like one.

standards

’The letter without a signature was more like a flier and the poorly photocopied booklet did not appear to meet the standards we now expect from government publications.’

He added: ’With 2,047 people not returning their forms there could have been serious issues here.

’I think offering a service to witness the documentation at Markwell House was incredibly positive.’