Employment Affairs and Social Protection Committee to examine proposed Retirement Savings System

The meeting at 10 a.m. in Committee Room 4 can be viewed live here and on Android and Apple devices using the Houses of the Oireachtas app.

Scheduled witnesses include Assistant Secretary Tim Duggan, who is responsible for pensions policy at the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection.

In August, Minister Regina Doherty launched a consultation process on the plan, a core commitment in the Government’s Roadmap for Pensions Reform 2018-2023.

As envisaged, the Automatic Enrolment Retirement Savings System would be launched by 2022 to supplement the State pension. Employees would be encouraged to set aside income from their payslips, and these voluntary retirement contributions would be topped up by both the State and their employer.

“The proposal would create, for the first time in Ireland, a parallel and complementary means for preparing financially for retirement through a combination of public pensions and private savings,” said Committee Chairman John Curran TD.

“The debate over this proposal takes place against a backdrop of rising concerns over how to keep the nation’s retirement provisions sufficient in a country with an aging population,” Deputy Curran said. “The Committee welcomes this early involvement in the Government’s consultation process and looks forward to learning more about Department scenarios for how this system might work.”