Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)
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To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform his plans to reduce pensions paid to former office holders. [43486/12]

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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A number of reforms have been introduced in relation to Public Service pension entitlements which affect Ministerial pensions. Under the Public Service Superannuation (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2004, Ministerial pensions are not payable to new Oireachtas Members (as defined in the Act) before 65 years of age and, under the Oireachtas (Allowances to Members) and Ministerial and Parliamentary Offices Act 2009, Ministerial pensions are no longer payable to sitting Members of the Oireachtas following the last general election, or to Members of the European Parliament following the next elections to the Parliament.

Public Service pensions for former Ministers who retire after February 2012 will be reduced in line with the substantial pay reductions applied under the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (FEMPI) Acts, and for those who retired before the end of February the Public Service Pension Reduction (PSPR) applies. I provided for an increase in the rate of PSPR that applies to pensions in excess of €100,000 to 20% of the excess amount, effective from 1 January of this year.

Furthermore, the Public Service Pensions (Single Scheme and Other Provisions) Act 2012 introduced a new Single Public Service Pension Scheme with a new minimum pension age of 66, rising in due course with the age at which the State Pension (Contributory) will become payable. This will apply to all new Members of the Oireachtas, including new entrant Ministers, as defined in the Act. This Act also provides that pensions for all Public Servants who are subject to the Act will be based on career average earnings, as opposed to the current final salary basis.

It is important to point out that legal advice from the Attorney General says that it is possible to apply proportionate reductions to existing pensions, as has been done to date in the FEMPI legislation. However, account must be taken of the fact that pension benefits are considered to be property rights, which limits the action that can be taken.