Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)

It will take as long as it takes. The officials in my Department have started drafting the Green Paper and are finding the process very useful. The Green Paper will outline the major policy choices that face the country and most people would agree this is the right way to proceed. We know the size of the problem, that the choices are not easy and that they must be paid for. One idea the officials proposed for consideration entails a mandatory contribution of 15%, shared between employers, employees and the Exchequer, on earnings between €15,000 and €60,000.

I have stated a few times that it is important not to shy away from considering the mandatory or quasi-mandatory systems. I am determined to shine the light on them and examine them closely to determine whether we can afford them. More important, we should determine whether we can afford not to have them, given that over half the population, including 500,000 working women, do not have occupational pensions. It is incumbent on us to take some action.

This is not an easy area and mandatory pension contributions can be misinterpreted as additional taxation. However, saying this is like saying PRSI contributions should not have been made mandatory. PRSI contributions are mandatory and nobody in the country would put his hand up and ask that they be made voluntary. I am determined to keep the options of mandatory and quasi-mandatory pensions on the table as we engage in the Green Paper process. Meanwhile, we will consider other proposals, for example, the suggestion by the Pensions Board that we should have an SSIA-type system rather than tax reliefs. This was one of the major proposals and we are continuing to make good progress in examining it.

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