Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 175: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if State pensions will be offered on a [i]pro rata[/i] basis to all contributors regardless of their average number of annual contributions; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8224/07]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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In order to qualify for the maximum rate of the state pension (contributory) a person must, amongst other qualifying conditions, achieve a yearly average of at least 48 contributions paid or credited on his/her social insurance record. I am anxious to ensure that as many people as possible can qualify for a contributory pension and, in this regard, the range of reduced payments has been expanded over the years so that more people can receive a payment. Reduced pensions are paid to those with yearly averages as low as 10 contributions. Arrangements are also in place for the payment of pro-rata pensions to those with mixed rate insurance records, contributions from other EU member States or countries with which Ireland has a reciprocal agreement, and a number of special pensions such as the pre-53 are also available.

Overall, the pensions which people receive under the social welfare system represent good value for the level of contributions which many people pay and I think it is only reasonable to expect that those qualifying achieve a minimum level of contributions on their social insurance record. Such provisions are a common feature of pension systems in other countries.

The qualifying conditions for pensions are designed to uphold the contributory principles underlying eligibility for pensions which require that a person has made a sustained and ongoing commitment to social insurance. Awarding pensions on a pro-rata basis for any contributions made would not, I consider, be in keeping with these principles.

Issues in relation to contribution conditions are being examined in the context of the preparation of the Green Paper on pensions, which I expect will be finalized by the end of the month.

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 176: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if he is satisfied that applications for pension or other entitlements requiring contributions made in more than one country are processed within the shortest possible time with particular reference to countries with which bilateral agreements exist; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8225/07]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
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Currently Ireland has bilateral social security agreements with seven countries: Austria, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, the USA and Switzerland. Ireland entered into a bilateral understanding with Canada on 1 October 1994. The main purpose of these agreements is to protect the social security pension rights of workers who have worked both in Ireland and the other country to which the agreements apply.

Bilateral agreements provide for periods of insurance and, where appropriate, periods treated as equivalent to periods of insurance in Ireland and the relevant country, to be combined for the purposes of calculating any pension entitlements. They also provide that workers posted on a temporary basis may continue to be covered under the social insurance system of the country in which they were previously insured.

Social welfare entitlements falling for examination under EU or bilateral agreements take a longer time to process than domestic claims due to the need to obtain and exchange information with the other countries involved. Additionally, the logistics involved in transferring information between institutions in different countries can lead to delays outside the control of my Department. Reviews of the implementation of EU and bilateral arrangements are carried out from time to time by officials of the Department to expedite transfers of information.

There is, at present, a build-up of claims for processing under EU and bilateral arrangements arising from the substantial increase in claims from EU nationals in recent years. In the majority of cases the people involved are in receipt of a pension from another Member State or country with which the Department has a bilateral agreement. My Department is endeavouring to process these claims as quickly as possible. Overtime and deployment of staff from other areas is currently being used to assist with the work.

Delays in processing applications do not ultimately result in any losses to pensioners in that those who qualify for payment have their claims backdated fully in accordance with the normal regulations for backdating pension claims.