Timmy Dooley (Clare, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I agree that the issue needs to be resolved but the Minister is not a hurler on the ditch who has handed the entire responsibility for the matter to the trustees. As one of the biggest shareholders in Aer Lingus and the sole shareholder in DAA, he is a significant actor in this game. I urge him to engage to the fullest extent to ensure the State is prepared to man up to its responsibilities. He stated that the pension fund has not been adequately resourced over the years and suggested that was an issues for the funders, one of which is the State. He has a responsibility to the workers who took pay cuts and accepted pay restraints in the expectation that when they reached pension age they would receive an appropriate level of benefits. Unfortunately, it is now clear to many of them that their working lives have not provided them with the capacity to retire in the manner they expected. The State shares a responsibility in this regard. Given that the Minister is at the coalface on this issue, I urge him to provide the appropriate level of funding to meet the State's responsibility.

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