Brian Lenihan Jnr (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)

The proposal applies to teachers recruited from April 2005 and the issues the Senator has raised will not arise in general for another 35 to 40 years. The Minister for Education and Science will have ample opportunity to address the operational difficulties involved in that time span.

Senator O'Toole asked about career breaks. A person on a career break with a right to return will not come within the scope of the Bill. Such people will not be new entrants and this is quite clear. I am advised of this and I am happy to put it on the record of the House. Only new entrants are affected by this measure.

The Senator also spoke of the burn-out of teachers. A limited pilot scheme of early retirement for teachers was agreed as part of the PCW restructuring agreement between the Department and the teachers' unions early in 1997. The scheme provided for early retirements for teachers experiencing different kinds of professional difficulty as well as teachers whose posts became surplus to requirements. Under the agreement the pilot scheme was to be reviewed in the light of the pensions commission report. The commission recommended continuation of the scheme for a further five years after which it should be subject to another review.

The Minister has not departed from the commission's recommendations. He envisages that the pilot scheme will be reviewed in a couple of years' time. Accordingly, he has not addressed this issue in the Bill. No decision has been reached on this matter. There are numerous issues and it is a matter for operational decision between the Minister for Education and Science and the relevant staff interests in future years. I appreciate the often passionate concern expressed by Senator O'Toole and others about the future of the profession, just as many Senators have expressed concern at our own future in public life and whether the implications for pensions will have an effect on those who chose to participate in public life.

The Commission on Public Service Pensions made recommendations. I confess to being somewhat surprised at them. The Minister decided to add to them. I believe he has decided in principle that accepting the pension report is important for safeguarding the economy into the future. The Government has decided that the new arrangements should apply to us and we should provide respectable ballast to the proposal.

I thank Senators for their contributions to the debate and I look forward to addressing the detailed issues on Committee Stage.