Johnny Guirke (Meath West, Sinn Fein)

For years, Sinn Féin has stood with the men and women who have built our economy from the ground up. We have championed the right to retire at 65, a milestone earned through decades of hard work and dedication. Yet we also recognise a simple truth: life does not always fit a single blueprint. Some people want to keep contributing, learning and shaping our world, even after 65, and they should have that option without being pushed out of their jobs or onto a less secure footing. The decision to retire is deeply personal. It is not one size fits all. Each person's health, job, finances and hopes for the years ahead come into play. Health can be a friend or a foe in this journey. It can open doors to more flexible work or make a longer career challenging. I heard a story from a worker who wanted to stay beyond retirement age but found signing a new contract meant different terms and conditions which left him worse off after a lifetime of service. We must ensure no one is forced to accept worse conditions simply because of their age. The right to continue working must be safeguarded, not traded away in the fine print of a new agreement.

The heart of our position is simple: every person should be able to decide how to shape their own life after years of hard work. Sinn Féin supports, firmly and clearly, the right to retire at 65 with a full pension and the equally important right to keep working, if that is what a person desires. Too long and too often, workers have had mandatory retirement ages written into their contracts. If you want to stay on and contribute your knowledge and skills, you should not be forced out because of age or face a change in terms and conditions that undermines your well-earned security.

I welcome this Bill because it aligns with our long-standing goal of removing mandatory retirement clauses and restoring real choice to workers. The freedom to decide to retire or continue working must belong to the individual, not to a corporate policy or outdated rules that deny people agency over their own lives. After a lifetime of work, people deserve the chance to retire with their pension at 65 or to carry on contributing. Right now, too many are pushed out of jobs and into unemployment long before reaching pension eligibility. With that income gap comes stress, uncertainty and a squeeze on families already facing the pressures of the rising cost of living. When workers are pushed out, it is not just a pay cheque that vanishes. The social connections, daily routine and sense of purpose that come from being part of a team can also disappear. We must protect those bonds and support mental health by ensuring fair terms and keeping doors open to continued employment, if that is what a person wants.

We stand with workers and we want to work on their terms with employers who want to retain the experience and energy of their seasoned staff, and with a government that will not duck this issue. It is time to commit to a policy that respects choice, protects earned benefits and recognises the value of a life spent contributing to the working environment. We will not abandon the principle that workers should have control over their own careers. We will continue to advocate for a system where a worker at 65 can choose to retire with their pension or continue working with terms that respect their experience and contributions.

We ask the Minister of State to ensure any Bill before us preserves the rights of workers to work on their own terms and guarantee that those who wish to keep contributing do so on fair and secure conditions, while those who retire can do so with dignity and full pension rights. We welcome the Bill but urge the Minister of State to listen to his constituents and the public, who want the choice of retiring at 65 with dignity and security or staying in the workforce, if that is their decision.

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