Tom Brabazon (Dublin Bay North, Fianna Fail)

I wish to raise an inequity that has arisen as a result of changes in the pension arrangements for the uniformed members of Dublin Fire Brigade, An Garda Síochána, the Prison Service and the Defence Forces. A group from Dublin Fire Brigade delivered a letter to the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage last year calling for an urgent meeting to discuss this issue, which is resulting in many members considering leaving the service. Has that meeting taken place? If it has, what was discussed and what actions were agreed? One firefighter has indicated how she could be left with a pension of about €300 per week when she retires after decades of service as a result of an unfair two-tier system. A uniformed officer who earns €60,000 a year will receive an occupational pension of only €16,300 on retirement at age 55, which he or she must live on for more than ten years before accessing the State pension at 66. Meanwhile, an older officer who joined before 2013 will get a full pension of €31,800 from the age of 55, simply because the supplementary pension scheme applies. Dublin City Council launched a recruitment campaign for the fire brigade this week.

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