Vol. 325 No. 8
asked the Minister for the Public Service if he is aware that under the Pensions' Act, 1964, public service pensions are revised only on 1 July each year with the result that many pensioners do not receive pension adjustments, arising from appropriate pay adjustments, for up to 11 months after this adjustment occurs; and if he will arrange for a review of pensions more frequently than once a year.
15.
asked the Minister for the Public Service if he is aware that under the Pensions Act, 1964, pensions of former State industrial workers are revised only on 1 July each year with the result that many pensioners do not receive pension adjustments arising from appropriate pay adjustments, for up to 11 months after adjustment occurs; and if he will arrange for a review of pensions more frequently than once a year.
With the permission of the Ceann Comhairle, I propose to take Questions Nos. 14 and 15 together.
The arrangement under which public service pensions are revised on 1 July each year by reference to the rates of pay in force on that date has been in operation for a number of years and is considered quite generous. Any question of varying the present arrangement would fall to be considered in the context of the coming budget.
State industrial workers are in the public service.
I appreciate that has been the position for a number of years, but will the Minister not agree that from time to time it can be very unfair to pensioners when their former colleagues get a substantial wage increase while they are subsisting on a much reduced pension because the increase does not operate for up to 11 months in some cases? Will the Minister agree this should be looked at?
The Deputy will appreciate from his experience in Government that any varying of this arrangement would fall to be considered in the context of the coming budget. He will also appreciate that I would not be in a position to say.
I am not asking the Minister to say. I am asking him to take it up with his colleague so that the anomaly can be remedied. It has been in operation for a number of years and on some occasions it has been found to be terribly unfair. Will the Minister have a look at it and consider doing something about it with his colleagues?
As I have said, any question of varying the position, which has been in operation for a number of years, would fall to be considered in the context of the coming budget.
The Minister is nearly as bad as his Minister of State.
Will the Minister agree that an improvement was made in the position of those people some years ago when the date was brought back from 30 September to 1 July?
That is true, but one date can sometimes be more beneficial than another. This year it is unfortunately true that the increases in the national understanding came after 1 July.
The National Coalition brought the date back and the intention was to bring it back gradually over a number of years so that ultimately the pensioners would get their increases at the same time as beneficiaries under the national pay agreements. Is it the present Government's intention to have this effected?
I do not know how the Deputy can say what the intention of his Government was.
I know what the intention was.
I cannot understand that, because if the Deputy goes into the arrangements he will see that bringing forward a date would not have worked beneficially this year because the increases came after 1 July. It is true to say that a new date was set by the last Government and it is also true that the original moves in that direction were taken by a previous Fianna Fáil Government.
Is the Minister aware that the promise was made by one of his predecessors 20 years ago? The then Minister, Deputy Jim Ryan, said he would ultimately give parity by doing exactly what Deputy Barry suggested. In view of that will the Minister try to honour what his predecessor promised even if it only means starting by asking his colleagues to consider it?
As I indicated to the Deputy, it will be considered in the context of the budget.
Can the Minister give us an approximate estimate of the average cost to the Exchequer of such parity being introduced?
The approximate cost of full parity would be almost £11 million.
