Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Gabhaim buíochas leis an gCeann Comhairle. Workers across the country will be deeply alarmed and angered by the Government's latest plan for the State pension. Let us call this what it is: a Trojan horse designed by Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael to move the pension age to 70 by stealth. The cat is out of the bag. The Government wants people to work until the age of 70. I suppose this will not come as a surprise to anybody because, after all, these are the parties that were hell-bent on raising the pension age to 67 and then to 68 until the weight of enormous public pressure made them climb down. However, instead of doing the right thing and bringing forward a progressive and fair policy, the Government is now presenting a ploy to force people into working until they are 70 years old with the promise of then having a decent standard of living. "Retire at 70 for an extra €60 in ... pension" is how one newspaper summarised it. This, however, is a scam. The pension deferral the Government is proposing means, in reality, that thousands of euro in pension payments will be taken from workers, payments they would now have as of right. We must be clear on this point.

It is not only those approaching pension age who are angered by this plan, but also young workers looking on now and wondering if they will ever get the chance to retire at all. Workers should have the right to retire at 65 with their pension, if that is what they want to do. The Government's proposal completely ignores the everyday reality of those who do hard physical jobs that take a toll on the body. Many of these workers started working at the age of 16 or 17, and some did so at a younger age. I am talking about factory workers, carers, retail workers, those on their feet all day in the service industries, nurses and many, many more. Hundreds and thousands of workers will be left out in the cold under this plan. They are not incapacitated and do not need an invalidity payment; they simply do not have anything left in the tank to keep working beyond the age of 65. They have put in their shift, they have done their bit and they are exhausted. Their right to retire at the age of 65 on a fair pension is not only a matter of public policy, but also a matter of principle and basic decency. One is either for it or against it. Clearly, the Taoiseach's Government is not only against it, but it will move heaven and earth to ensure it does not happen.

Sinn Féin is for the right to retire at 65 with a decent pension. This is what we would deliver in government. By the way, if we were delivering the budget next week, we would back up this commitment with an increase in the State pension of €15. Tá plean ag an Taoiseach chun aois an phinsin a bhogadh go dtí 70 bliain d'aois. Tá daoine ag iarraidh go mbeadh an ceart acu éirí as ag 65 le pinsean réasúnta tar éis dóibh a bheith ag obair go crua ar feadh a saoil ar fad. It is the duty of any Government worthy of the name to provide a State pension that allows pensioners to live a good and secure life. People looking on today will be very worried. I have a straight question for the Taoiseach and I would like a straight answer. Why is his Government so dead against the right to retire with a decent pension at the age of 65?

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