Mr. Speaker, initially the clause in question was drafted somewhat differently. It was not clear as to whether there was a provision for interest should a person for instance who has opted of the pension system leave at age 51. The person would then draw the amount not at 51 but at 55, the same as a member of parliament who is contributing to the pension system would unless the person is grandfathered into the former system and receive benefits at age 55. Both systems are parallel.
The difference is the following. A person who receives a pension obviously receives it for some time, unless of course they pass on before they start receiving the benefits. In receiving the benefits there are adjustment periodically. Arguably that is a form of interest.
In the case of someone who receives the benefit of the supplementary severance it was silent in the bill. For greater certainty the words that are there were added and the reference is “shall accrue on the amount of the supplementary severance allowance from the time the person becomes entitled to it”, in other words the day the person ceases to be an MP, “to the time it is paid”.
How does one establish the rate? I am told that this is the normal form, what is referred to as the crown rate. It is the same rate applied if someone has money otherwise owing to him or her from the crown. For example, it could be an income tax reimbursement that is overdue or some other similar benefit. It is not a higher rate of interest, it is almost a nominal one, but one which exists in law at the present time and recognized in the form in which it is in the bill.