Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 18 April 2024
122. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if he will ensure the Industrial Relations (Provisions in Respect of Pension Entitlements of Retired Workers) Bill 2021 will progress through Committee Stage; if not, how he will ensure the rights of retired workers are protected when their pensions are being altered; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17047/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Private Members Bill on Industrial Relations (Provisions in Respect of Pension Entitlements of Retired Workers) is sponsored by the Deputy (and Deputies Paul Murphy, Richard Boyd Barrett and Gino Kenny). It is a matter for the Deputies to progress the Bill.
At the Second Stage debate on the Bill, the former Minister of State for Business, Employment and Retail, Damien English, clearly outlined the Department's difficulties and concerns in relation to the proposed Bill as it was then drafted, and explained why it could not be supported by the Government.
The Joint Committee on Enterprise Trade and Employment met in public session on the 25 January 2023 to discuss detailed scrutiny of the Bill. Following this meeting, my Department issued a detailed brief to the Committee as requested and no further correspondence has been received by the Committee.
If a person is in receipt of an occupational pension, their relationship is with the trustees of the pension fund. They no longer have an employment relationship with their former employer. As the Deputy will be aware, trustees have statutory and fiduciary duties to act in the best interests of all members of a fund.
It is the responsibility of the Office of the Pensions Ombudsman to act in an independent and impartial means of resolving complaints alleging financial loss occasioned by an act of maladministration and disputes of fact or law in relation to occupational pensions schemes and Personal Retirement Savings Accounts.
