Vol. 529 No. 1
914 Ms Fitzgerald asked the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs the number of people who do not qualify for either a contributory or non-contributory old age pension; the number of these who are public servants whose pension arrangements are supposed to compensate for their exclusions from the social welfare pensions; and the pro jections for the next ten years in this regard. [1808/01]
Table 1 which follows details the projected number of persons aged 65 and over during the period 2000 to 2011. Table 2 outlines the number of persons in receipt of old age contributory pension retirement pension and old age pension in April 2000 as well as the projected number of recipients of these payments over the period to 2011. It should be noted that both old age contributory pension and old age pension are payable from aged 66 while retirement pension is payable from age 65. Table 3 shows the number of recipients of all social welfare weekly payments made to persons aged 66 or over.
Data are not available on the number of former civil and public servants who do not qualify for a contributory or non-contributory old age pension. There are a number of reasons as to why persons aged 66 and over may not be in receipt of a social welfare pension in their own right. Some, including most public servants, will not have been covered for certain contributory pensions during their working lifetime. Others may not have been covered by the social insurance system at all during their lifetime or have insufficient contributions to qualify for a payment. This group includes, for example, many former self-employed persons who retired before social insurance for the self-employed was introduced in 1988. All persons who do not qualify for a contributory pension are eligible to apply for an old age non-contributory pension which is subject to a means test.
All civil and public servants recruited since April 1995 pay PRSI at the full employee rate and are covered for all benefits and pensions. The number of civil and public servants who pay social insurance at the modified rate will decline in the years ahead as individuals retire or resign from the service. The projected number of modified contributors over the period 2001 to 2046 is illustrated in table 4 below.
Table 1. Projected number of persons aged 65 or over,
2000-01.
|
April 2000 |
424,100* |
|
April 2006 |
452,300** |
|
April 2011 |
503,800** |
|
April2000 |
248,353* |
|
April2006 |
254,000** |
|
April2011 |
288,000** |
|
Old Age (Contributory) Pension |
77,433 |
|
Retirement pension * |
79,275 |
|
Old Age Pension |
91,645 |
|
Widow/er's (Contributory) Pension |
65,141 |
|
Widow/er's (Non Contributory) Pension |
14,397 |
|
Deserted Wife's Benefit |
480 |
|
Deserted Wife's Allowance |
412 |
|
One Parent Family Payment |
136 |
|
Blind Person's Pension |
600 |
|
Carer's Allowance |
770 |
|
Invalidity Pension |
3,349 |
|
Total |
333,928 |
|
2001 |
157,000 |
|
2006 |
148,000 |
|
2011 |
139,000 |
|
2016 |
115,000 |
|
2026 |
55,000 |
|
2036 |
2,000 |
|
2046 |
Nil |
