Ossian Smyth (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I am here on behalf of my colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Chambers, who has delegated authority over postal policy in the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications. Under section 46 of the Postal and Telecommunications Services Act 1983, the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications, with the concurrence of the Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform, approves any superannuation schemes submitted by An Post. The operation of the schemes is a matter between the management of An Post, staff representatives and the trustees of the schemes.

The 1983 Act requires that, for civil servants who transferred to An Post on vesting day, that is 1 January 1984, An Post’s pension scheme must provide for not less favourable conditions than those to which the members of staff were entitled immediately before the vesting day. It is a transitional provision which ensures that transferring employees were no worse off on vesting day than they were immediately before the transfer.

The pension entitlements of pre and post vesting members of the An Post superannuation schemes are set out in the scheme rules which were approved at the time by both Ministers. Paragraph 13 of the An Post main superannuation scheme 2012 - pension increases - accurately reflects the pre-1984 discretionary nature of the award of increases to pensions in payment.

An Post has indicated that the trustees are not aware of any basis on which the superannuation entitlements of the pensioners are less favourable under the scheme in a manner that would amount to a breach of section 46 of the 1983 Act. The benefits for those members to whom section 46 of the 1983 Act applies did not include automatic increases. They included discretionary increases.

Section 46 of the 1983 Act sets a minimum level of parity between the An Post scheme and the scheme that applied to staff members of the Department of Posts and Telegraphs as it stood on the day before vesting day. It does not provide that the conditions in the An Post scheme must continue to match any subsequent improvement in pension conditions for the award of pension increases in the Civil Service. It is a transitional provision which was intended to ensure that transferring employees were no worse off than they were immediately before the transfer. Section 46 does not give rise to an entitlement to pension increases other than those granted in accordance with the An Post superannuation scheme rules.

Prior to vesting day, any increases to pensions in payment were discretionary. They were awarded at the discretion of the Minister for Finance. The rules of the scheme accurately reflect the pre-vesting day discretionary nature of pension increases in the public sector. The pension increase rule has remained unaltered since the commencement of the scheme.

The company has advised that the circumstances of An Post, including the nature and governance of its pension arrangements, are different from those which apply to “established civil servants” and the superannuation handbook and guidance notes for the established Civil Service scheme 2006. Pension increases are considered by An Post annually. An assessment is carried out taking into consideration the relevant factors in deciding whether to seek ministerial approval for a pension increase, including, among others the sustainability of the scheme's funding relative to its liabilities.