Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

We are in the same space as when I was replying to Deputy Michael McGrath. It is a case of trying to make one's best judgment on the balance between maintaining pension provisions for individuals which are adequate or sufficient for their retirement and, at the same time if they are facing a particular financial crisis, giving them access to funds they have accumulated either by way of AVCs or in an ARF. It is a matter of judgment. Iwould be very cautious in opening up access to AVCs. That is the reason we are not incentivising it by giving tax relief. We are keeping it at a low percentage of 30% and for a temporary period. ARFs would not apply to as many as the AVCs, but there are similar considerations. It is an arcane issue, into which we do not often have an insight. It is, therefore, a case of using best judgment. The Department does not respond to a couple of inquiries, but there were inquiries at which people were represented directly and also by the industry. They stated they were within three or four years of retirement, that they had planned to organise their affairs in a particular way in respect of the ARFs and that because the level had been increased so dramatically, they could no longer do so.