asked the Minister for Public Service the number of civil servants that are at present on pension; and the cost per annum of such payments.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Civil Service Pensioners.
6.
The number of retired civil servants who are currently in receipt of Exchequer paid pensions is 7,857. The current annual cost of these pensions is £29,468,129.
How is that pension scheme funded? Recently in the private and semi-State sectors a number of difficulties as regards pension schemes arose. Has the Minister any comment to make on the security of the funds which pay Civil Service pensions?
That is a separate question.
The Minister is on record as saying that if the pay deal is not accepted under the terms of the national plan, one of the areas where civil servants might be in difficulty would be in relation to their pensions. Maybe if I framed my question that way the Minister might answer it.
The question as on today's Order Paper deals with numbers.
If the Deputy were to frame his question that way I would have to say that his paraphrasing of my remarks is loose and could lead to an inaccurate interpretation of what I said. In relation to the funding of these pensions, as in most other countries Civil Service pensions are funded on a pay-as-you-go basis rather than a formal funding.