Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 6 October 2004
174 Mr. Kehoe asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if he will remove the requirement whereby a person reaching the age of 65 must first retire for a period before being able to work and retain a portion of their pension; when he will remove the financial disincentives for persons of pension age who may want to continue some form of employment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23372/04]
View answerIn addition to satisfying the relevant contribution conditions, those applying for retirement pension at age 65 must be retired from employment or self employment. Retirement is defined as not having earnings from employment of more than €38 per week or earnings from self-employment of more than €3,174 per annum. There is no retirement condition associated with old age contributory or non-contributory pensions which are both payable at 66 years of age.
The retirement pension was first introduced in 1970 and was intended to bridge the gap between retirement at 65 and the pension age for social welfare purposes, which at the time was 70 years of age. The qualifying age for old age pension was subsequently reduced over time to 66 years of age which means that the requirement to retire before receiving a retirement pension now only has effect for one year.
Given the improvements in life expectancy which have occurred in recent decades and the demographic changes our society will face in the years ahead, it is important that we should encourage and facilitate people who wish to extend their working lives to remain active.
In the circumstances, the Government is committed, as part of the programme for Government, to removing the requirement to retire at 65 in order to receive a retirement pension. The implementation of this commitment will be considered in a budgetary context having regard to the availability of resources and other priorities.
