Chair of Pensions Commission to address Social Protection Committee

Officials from the Department of Social Protection are also due to attend the committee.

The Pensions Commission was established in November 2020 to examine the sustainability of the State Pension System and the Social Insurance fund.

Speaking ahead of the meeting, Committee Cathaoirleach Deputy Denis Naughten said: “The Pensions Commission chaired by Josephine Feehily was an independent body made up of pension experts, academics and workers representative groups.”

“The Commission has completed its work and its report was published in October. This report has stated that the current State Pension is not sustainable in its current form and changes are needed.”

“We are all aware that the State Pension is valued by our society and it is the bedrock of the pension system in Ireland. It is extremely effective at preventing pensioners from falling into poverty and we want to make sure that this remains the case into the future.  But a State Pension should do more than protect a person from poverty. It should provide financial security whilst enabling the older person to continue to live a fulfilling and active life."

“The population is set to increase from 5 million currently to over 6 million by 2050 and that is something we need to plan for in order to ensure older people have an adequate pension and a safety net to keep them out of poverty.”

“There are clear challenges in ensuring the sustainability of the State Pension for future generations, thankfully because people are living longer. This has been known for years and confirmed in the Report of the Commission on Pensions; currently 4.5 working age people per person aged 65 and over; that is set to change to 2.3 working age people per person aged 65 and over by 2051."

“The Government has asked the Committee for its views on the recommendations set out in the Report, and this follows on from the Committee's remit and our recent submission to the Commission on Pensions”.

“We look forward to hearing from Ms Feehily and discussing the report as the Government has committed to taking action having regard to the recommendation of the Commission within six months.”

Read the report of the Commission on Pensions here. 

Watch the Committee proceedings live here.