Natasha Newsome Drennan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

This is welcome legislation from the Government. An increasing cohort of workers opt to work past their planned retirement age, some into their late 60s or even into their 70s. While this is fundamentally a personal choice for many, it would be naïve to ignore the external factors which put workers into a situation where they feel they have no choice but to keep working. These factors are direct results of failures by this Government and its Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael predecessors - failures that include the cost-of-living crisis, sky-high energy costs, chronic underinvestment in housing and a healthcare system that is bulging under the pressure. This Government has constantly failed to grasp the severity of the cost-of-living crisis. Grocery prices have risen by one third in just three years. Staples like chicken fillets have seen a staggering increase of 120%. How can older people enjoy a decent standard of living in retirement when the State pension fails to keep pace with inflation, let alone these outrageous price hikes? Every Member of this House knows a pensioner who has faced extraordinary energy bills or older people forced to leave their heating off for fear of the next bill. On one side of the crisis we have vulnerable pensioners, while on the other are energy providers like Electric Ireland, a major State-owned company posting record profits.

Under Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, Ireland’s energy costs have gone from being among the most affordable in the EU-----

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