Claire Kerrane (Roscommon-Galway, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank Dr. Begg for coming before the committee and for his opening statement. Obviously, the Pensions Authority has a very important role as an authority when it comes to pensions in Ireland and this is very much something very new and it will be very new to an awful lot of workers out there who are more and more are reliant on their State pension. We really need this additional tier, and it is so important we get it right.

Like Deputy Ó Cathasaigh, I am unsure how much Dr. Begg can comment in this regard but I ask him to speak on his impression of the heads of Bill, how auto-enrolment will look and how satisfied he is in respect of its roll-out. His opening statement referred to the need for this to be rolled out as quickly as possible. Obviously, there have been long delays to the roll-out of auto-enrolment and we are still a little bit, if not a long way, off its introduction. Issues have been raised on a gender aspect to this issue and the difficulty for women in particular, who take time off in some cases, such as for maternity. The Bill does not address issues such as that and there could be a difficulty relating to the lack of flexibility for people entering auto enrolment as it is outlined. Again, I am not sure how much Dr. Begg can comment in that regard but it would be good to get his views, given the responsibility of the Pensions Authority in respect of what is outlined and what auto-enrolment will look like in the context of workers and its roll-out moving forward.