Joan Collins (Dublin South Central, Independents 4 Change) | Oireachtas source

It was A Roadmap for Pensions Reform 2018-2023. It is now 2023 and we are going into the next budget, for 2024. The policy states the State pension should be indexed at 34% of average earnings and be tied to the consumer price index and average earnings. As I said, the commitment would put our State pension at €310 per week. The increase of €12 per week that was given in the previous budget was below the cost-of-living rate. It was below the €20 figure that many of the organisations and NGOs which represent people, such as Age Action and the National Disability Authority, put forward clearly. They said the Government made a political choice to cut the living standards of older people. A weekly income is more important than one-off payments. People base their annual bills, shopping, clothing, medicine costs and all things older people need on their weekly income. Will the Taoiseach check that out and confirm what the Government confirmed in its policy in 2018 and implement the 34% of average earnings index in budget 2024 or before?

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