Danny Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent) | Oireachtas source

She is gone anyway. I am not belittling the junior Minister who is present in any way but this is a serious issue. Fianna Fáil knows well what happened on the doorsteps before the general election, as do all the other parties and candidates. Commitments were given by certain parties that if they got into power, they would rectify the situation and ensure the pension age remained at 65. There are many public servants who have to retire at 65. It is absolutely ridiculous that they have to go on the dole for a year. There was talk about increasing the pension age to 67 or 68. I will not be supporting that at any time while I am a Member of Dáil Éireann. I refer to people who have done hard physical work all their lives and who are strangled and torn from it. I am thinking of farmers, plasterers and all the others who do physical work. Without a shadow of a doubt, they are entitled to get the pension at 65 years of age.

Very little has been said about the people who create employment. It is very difficult and onerous to ensure one has workers' pay ready and on the table for them on a Friday evening.

I want to mention the community employment scheme supervisors. I remember a particularly emotional night in this Chamber when Fianna Fáil Deputies promised that if their party got into power, they would look after the supervisors. Those supervisors are in the very same place tonight as they were on that night.

The women in 2012-----

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