Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I always said it would be my intention to publish this Bill and see it enacted this year, and we are going to deliver against that. If no interim measures were in place, I would understandably have been criticised for the lack of such interim measures, given the interest many public servants have in accessing the provisions of this scheme.

To answer the Deputy's point, the interim measures enable pre-2004 public servants who reach the age of 65 to remain in employment only until they reach the age of eligibility for the contributory State pension, which is currently 66, subject to certain conditions. Existing retire and re-hire mechanisms are being used by public bodies to facilitate affected staff for the interim period. Payment under the interim arrangements at the minimum point of the relevant payscale is in line with current arrangements.

To date, 100 members of the Civil Service have availed of the interim measures. As I have just said, if we had no interim measures, the level of anxiety with regard to the introduction of this Bill would only have increased.

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