Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 76 and 89 together.

The consultation period on the pensions Green Paper was completed and the time for making submissions closed on 31 May 2008. Overall, the response to the request for submissions on the Green Paper and attendance at the regional seminars held by the Department earlier in the year has been extremely positive. The consultation period closed with a very successful conference in Dublin Castle on international pension reforms. The conference featured presentations from countries such as Australia, New Zealand and the UK which have, or are planning, major reforms as well as speakers from the OECD and the World Bank who dealt with the wider international reform agenda.

The extent to which the public engaged in the process has been particularly satisfying and will give us a clear picture of the issues and concerns people have regarding pensions now and into the future. I understand that upwards of 360 submissions have been received, many in the final days of the consultation process, with approximately 300 coming from members of the public. All the submissions received are available on the website. The submissions are being assessed and a report summarising the issues raised and suggestions for reform will be finalised by approximately the end of June. This report will be published as soon as possible thereafter.

While I understand that there is a general acceptance in the submissions that action is required on our pensions system, it appears there is no clear consensus on the extent of the reform required, or the manner in which any reforms should be delivered. Our objective must be to ensure that we have in place a pensions system which will deliver an adequate retirement income to all our people and which can, at the same time, withstand the cost pressures which will arise in the future as the composition of our population changes and the balance between those at work and those who are retired shifts dramatically.

In deciding on reforms we must be aware that good pension provision entails significant costs for society as a whole, whether it is delivered through the State system or by personal contributions to private arrangements. While the Government is faced with difficult decisions, we are determined to bring this process to a conclusion by the end of the year by announcing a framework to address the pensions agenda for the longer term. The nature of the reform decided on will dictate the period over which it will be implemented.

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