Vol. 509 No. 6
288 Mr. N. Ahern asked the Minister for Finance the superannuation system operated for unestablished outdoor staff in the Revenue Commissioners; the reason payments to a person (details supplied) were reduced when he reached 66; if this reduction is generally known to staff; the reason the fund is organised in this way; the reason payments and revenue should reduce in line with social welfare increases; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [21075/99]
The person in question was a member of the non-contributory pension scheme for non-established State employees. As in the case of the generality of public sector occupational pension schemes whose members pay the full rate of PRSI and are therefore entitled to the full range of social welfare benefits, the non-established pension scheme specifically provides for the integration of the occupational pension with social welfare benefits. The effect of integration in the case of a person with full service is to provide that the sum of the scheme pension and the person's social welfare entitlement corresponds to the pension payable under a non-integrated pension scheme to a public servant in modified PRSI retiring on the same day.
Since the person in question retired before the age of 65 years at which he could qualify for a social welfare retirement pension, the initial rate of occupational pension awarded under the non-established scheme was greater than that which would have been payable to him if he had attained age 65 on the date of retirement. Accordingly, when the person concerned reached 65 years, the rate of scheme pension was changed to take account of the fact that he was now entitled to a higher rate of social welfare payment. I would point out that, if the scheme did not provide for such adjustments, a person retiring at age 65 would receive lesser total benefits than a person with the same service who retires before that age.
