Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

My question, as does my colleague’s, relates to those women who, for one reason or other, had to leave the workforce either to raise a family or because of the marriage ban. As a result, they find themselves in a position of qualifying for a lower amount of a pension or, in some cases, no pension at all. It might be said their spouses might qualify but that is not the issue. There is also the other related issue whereby in the case of partners in a household, whether they be small shopkeepers, small business owners, small farmers or whatever, only one partner qualifies for a pension.

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