Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I agree that early access can only be allowed in very limited circumstances and that it is policy to encourage people to provide for their retirement, but one of the reasons some people are reluctant to join a private pension scheme is they believe, rightly, that the money will be locked away for a very long time and that, come what may in their own lives - as we know, life throws the unexpected at us - there is no provision to access that money. In very narrow circumstances we could allow people to access a proportion, not all, of the money they have put away because in the circumstances I have outlined where there is loss of employment, a critical illness or they are simply drowning in debt, the money would be of far more use to them than it will be in ten or 15 years time when retirement is on the horizon. There are limited circumstances in which the economy, as well as the individuals concerned, would benefit and it might encourage more people to join a pension scheme if there was a little flexibility.

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