Imelda Munster (Louth, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the chance to speak on this important motion. The State pension age was a significant issue at the time of the last election and it remains a significant issue for thousands of people across the State. Sinn Féin will continue its campaign until the Government's plans to raise the pension age are scrapped and the pension age is restored to 65. The Government plans to raise the pension age next year to 67 and to 68 in 2028. The State pension transition payment has been abolished, leaving thousands of 65-year-olds having to sign on for jobseekers' payments. Thousands of people are in receipt of a €203 jobseeker's payment instead of the State pension, which is €45 higher per week. This amounts to an annual loss for a person who retires in this State of €2,355 per annum. These are people who have worked hard all their lives. Some have worked hard in physical jobs for decades. They have earned their right to retire at 65. They paid their taxes, which the Minister of State seems to forget. When people get to pension age, they have already paid their taxes for their pension. They have paid social insurance contributions all their working lives.

Some Deputies, the people who are making these unjust laws, can retire from the age of 50, should they choose to. Some will be retiring to enjoy big fat pensions. We cannot have one rule for people in here and another for everybody else. It is wrong to make people's working lives longer without giving them any say or choice whatsoever. We support those who wish to remain at work after 65. People should not be forced to stop working against their wishes. We need a fairer system that suits people's needs as they reach the traditional retirement age. We have to support those who want to continue working, for example by ensuring that their PRSI payments count towards their State pension. We must also respect that others will want to retire at the age of 65. We need an end to mandatory retirement. We need to restore the State pension transition payment and we need to keep the pension age at 65. We need action. There has been too much flip-flopping and indecision by Government. We know what the people and unions want, and we fully support them.

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