John Brady (Wicklow, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

This motion on pensions is fundamentally about two things: fairness and equality. It is about fairness for those who are obliged to retire at 65 years of age when accessing the State pension and equality for all women when they retire. This motion is about correcting the mistakes made by Fine Gael and the Labour Party in the pension reforms made in 2012. Those reforms were made without any long-term thinking or forward planning and with no adequate processes put in place alongside those reforms. This motion is about rectifying the injustices that were imposed on women by the marriage bar, which was not abolished in this State until 1973. The marriage bar was an appalling injustice that impacted on an estimated 47,000 women and which has yet to be addressed. The 2012 pension reforms were rammed through the Oireachtas and they were wrong. Sinn Féin opposed them then and we oppose them now. In tabling this motion, we have engaged with a number of organisations on it, including Age Action Ireland, the National Women’s Council of Ireland and the Irish Congress of Trade Unions.

This week more than 5,000 men and women of 65 years of age will receive their weekly jobseeker's payment of €188. In many cases, these are men and women who worked for 40 years or more and contributed to their pension, but who cannot now access it. These are people who were obliged by contract to retire at 65 years of age and who are left with a jobseeker's payment as their only option for income. No 65 year old in this State should be forced to sign on for a jobseeker's payment due to the failure of Fine Gael and the Labour Party to plan effectively when increasing the State pension age to 66 years and abolishing the State transitional pension. Where else in the world would one see a system where on retirement people are pushed into taking a jobseeker's payment for one year before accessing the State pension?

I have lost count of the number of people who have told me the same story: they retire, as they are obliged to, at 65 years of age, apply for the State pension and are told they simply cannot have it. The option for them is to apply for a jobseeker's payment and they are quietly told to take the money and not to worry about seeking work. It is an absolute farce and a joke. The situation is one of many examples of reforms being pushed through these Houses without any planning or care for the consequences. The increase in the State pension age came about with no political debate, public consultation or cost-benefit analysis of the measure. This motion is about fairness for those who have no choice but to retire at 65 years of age and who are being deprived of a pension that they have earned and paid into.

A few weeks ago, a lady contacted my office. Her husband had worked all his life, until he was forced to retire at 65 years of age. He had no option but to sign on for a jobseeker's payment. He had never looked for anything from the State and had always managed to support himself and his family through his work. On his retirement, this couple decided to travel to Australia to see their children and grandchildren, but they were told that his payment would be revoked if they left the country for longer than two weeks. This man died shortly after his retirement but his wife saw fit to contact me to inform me of the distress caused to her husband by the situation. This man retired after a lifetime of work and paying diligently into his pension pot, but he simply could not access it.

This issue has been raised by the Irish Congress of Trade Unions time and again, yet its calls on the Government and the Department of Social Protection have been ignored. Age Action Ireland has been to the fore on the issue and I commend it for supporting this motion. It knows the hardship that these measures have had on our older citizens and its input into the motion has been invaluable. Surprisingly, Fianna Fáil's Deputies, who have been vocal on the issue, are noticeably absent for this important motion. There is only one member of Government here and no member of the Labour Party is present. Nevertheless, I can see no reason for any Deputy to come into this Chamber tomorrow to vote against the motion and against fairness for those retiring at 65 years of age. I know that this issue has been brought to the attention of all Deputies by constituents throughout the State. These same people will wait to see if their Deputies believe that they should be entitled to a State pension on retirement at 65 years of age.

We know that women have been directly impacted by changes made to the calculation of contributions and the band rates imposed by Fine Gael and the Labour Party in 2012. These reforms have condemned thousands of women to poverty in their retirement years. Ann said, "I am totally disgusted with the system which does not entitle me to a full contributory pension after a lifetime of fully contributing to Irish society." Peggy said, "I and other women like me are facing a very uncertain and impoverished future." Mary said, “I was affected by the marriage bar; we are the forgotten women." These are the thoughts of just three of the thousands of women receiving less than the full State pension. For women, the pension system is utterly unjust. Women who take time to care for someone or to raise children are discriminated against. The impact of the imposition of the marriage bar, which was imposed on women, still lingers as it has lessened their pension entitlements. This was not the fault of those women, yet they are the very ones having to pay for it to this very day.

A person with a yearly average of 29 contributions who qualified for the State pension before September 2012 gets a pension of €228.70.

However, a person with the same yearly average number of contributions who qualified after September 2012 receives a pension of just €198.60, which amounts to a cut of €30 per week.

The National Women's Council of Ireland has highlighted the gender pension gap and, as part of its breakthrough manifesto before the most recent general election, called for this gap to be closed. It was supported in its call by many before the general election, but it is not supported to such a great extent now that the opportunity to act has presented itself. I thank the National Women's Council of Ireland for supporting the motion.

Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael have talked the talk on pensions for years, but the time for talking, Green Papers, White Papers, studies and reports on pensions is over. Action is required; we need to tackle pension inequalities now. The simple choice facing all Deputies in the Chamber is one of fairness and equality. Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil, in particular, must ask themselves two very simple questions about the motion. First, is it fair that those who are obliged to retire at 65 years are forced onto jobseeker's payments? Second, are women entitled to an equal pension?

If the Government - Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil - is not willing to support the motion, I call on it to postpone increasing pension age to 67 years in 2021 and 68 years in 2028. Ireland is moving much faster and further than any other European Union country in increasing pension age without having adequate plans in place. Pension age should not be extended to 68 years unless it is done as part of an EU-wide initiative. I ask the Department to seriously rethink the additional increases.

The motion provides an opportunity for Deputies to do something to help those who have highlighted the issue of pensions in their constituency offices. I am sure the same people, with thousands of women, will follow this debate and tomorrow's vote with interest. I urge all Deputies to support the motion as a first step in tackling the various inconsistencies in the pension system. The motion is about achieving fairness and equality for everyone in retirement.

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