Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Before the witnesses finish giving their evidence, I will ask a couple of questions relating to their international experience. They have obviously looked at what is happening elsewhere. In the context of the gender differential, is there a model in place at present that would be effective in dealing with that? The witnesses referred to speed when establishing a fund and that New Zealand is a good example in this regard. However, that it is a poor example of the gender differential. We all know it is important that we get this right. Whether it takes 18 months or 48 months to get it up and running, this is something that will be in place for generations to come. We need to ensure that we get it right. One of the issues committee members have raised at previous meetings is that relating to fees. There is a cap set on the fees under the auto enrolment at 0.5% of the overall fund. Charlie Weston published an article in the Irish Independent with the headline that €6 out of €10 of pension fund pots is consumed by charges. This led to the Bill from Deputy Ged Nash, which has passed Second Stage in the House, in respect of transparency around charges. The committee is genuinely concerned about this matter. We do not want to see people working and investing money in a pension pot that is only being used to fund the fees and the operation of that fund rather than actually delivering long-term pensions. What are the models out there that can deliver what we want to see happening in an effective manner without excessive charges being imposed on the customer?