Vol. 536 No. 2
66 Mr. S. Ryan asked the Minister for Defence if the Government has yet concluded its consideration of the position of the Commission on Public Service Pensions regarding the inclusion of the military service allowance in calculating pensions of members of the Defence Forces who retired between 1974 and 1990, and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13929/01]
The Government has not yet fully completed its detailed consideration of the final report of the Commission on Public Service Pensions, published by my colleague, the Minister for Finance, on 31 January 2001. Once it has done so, it will make formal decisions on the commission's recommendations. It is a lengthy, complex report containing wide ranging and far reaching recommendations on public service pensions. When publishing it, the Minister for Finance noted the commission's view that its recommendations represent an integrated, cohesive long-term strategy for public pensions and that in implementing it, it is important to preserve the integrity of the whole package. As I previously indicated, this will be a consideration in deciding the Government's response to the report.
How long will it take the Government to reach a conclusion on this issue? Must the retired members of the Defence Forces wait on a new Government to decide?
Many Governments dealt with this matter, including one in which the Deputy—
It is on the Minister's desk now.
—had the opportunity to make his point. It is a detailed, complex report covering a long time. The Government will give it active consideration in order to make decisions as soon as possible.
How would the Minister respond to a pensioner from the Defence Forces, who has served the country well, initially in poor conditions and with low salary? The Government is unwilling to implement these proposals, costing £9 million in 1997 costs, but approves the "Bertie Bowl" costing £1 billion and rising. The Minister should put himself in the position of these pensioners.
The commission, an independent group, stated that it "had shown that the cost of any change in policy on this matter would be substantial. In addition, the change in policy would possibly be extended to other groups with similar claims for pension increases. Accordingly, having assessed the arguments involved, the commission does not recommend any increase for the groups concerned."
Does the Minister deny that the report stated that the initial costs would be £9 million per year for the group that served between 1974 and 1990? Could he indicate how many retired members are involved?
I do not have the figures but recollect that 450 are involved. I will give the Deputy the details later.
Notwithstanding the issue's complexity from the Minister's perspective, is he disposed to giving these 450 people a proper pension, incorporating what is entailed in this matter and expediting a decision before the Government leaves office?
It is simple and tempting to answer "yes". On such a matter, raised by successive Deputies since the early 1990s for the Defence Forces and the early 1980s for the Garda Síochána, because of the complex nature of the decision, its affect on other groups and the potential cost, successive Governments have not gone down that road. Nonetheless, the Government has yet to make up its mind on this matter and I have said we will deal with that as quickly as possible.
