Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 6 December 2017
150. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Justice and Equality if the public service pension reduction is payable by members of An Garda Síochána who have worked their full years service and continue to work; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52096/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraIt is assumed that the Deputy is referring to the public service Pension-Related Deduction (PRD), which applies to the pay of all pensionable public servants including members of An Garda Síochána, under the terms of the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (FEMPI) Act 2009, as amended.
It is also assumed that the Deputy is referring to a scenario in which a member of An Garda Síochána attains maximum service for occupational pension purposes and continues to work beyond this while not accruing any further pension entitlements.
PRD applies to the pay, including any non-pensionable pay elements, received in a calendar year. It is a progressively structured reduction whose design ensures that those on higher pay rates are impacted proportionately more than those on lower pay.
The application of PRD is not dependent on the number of years of pensionable service accrued by a Garda member, rather, it is based on the condition that he or she is a member of An Garda Síochána pension scheme and the pay received by them in a calendar year exceeds the relevant PRD exemption threshold.
Specifically, section 2(1)(b) of FEMPI 2009 provides that any public servant who is a member of a public service pension scheme or who is entitled to benefit under such a scheme or receives a payment in lieu of membership of such a scheme is subject to PRD.
As set out in section 6.1 of the Public Service Stability Agreement 2018-2020, an Additional Superannuation Contribution (ASC) is to be introduced from 1 January 2019 as a permanent extra pension contribution to be paid by pensionable public servants; it will displace the Pension-Related Deduction (PRD). The ASC will apply in a similar manner to PRD in that it targets pay received in a calendar year. It differs, however, in that it will apply only to the pensionable element of pay received in that period.
The ASC is provided for in the Public Service Pay and Pensions Bill 2017 which is expected to be enacted before the end of the year.
