Dominic Hannigan (Meath East, Labour)
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307. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform his plans to reduce the pension levy on Dublin City Council fire brigade employees; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29503/14]

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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I assume the Deputy is referring to the Public  Service Pension-related Deduction (PRD) which applies to public servants.

The Pension-related Deduction is progressively structured so that better-paid staff pay proportionately more. The first €15,000 of annual earnings are free of PRD.  Nevertheless, all measures are subject to ongoing review and as provided for in the Haddington Road Agreement, the rate of Pension Related Deduction on the €15,000 to €20,000 band of pay received by public servants fell from 5% to 2.5% on 1 January 2014. This rate cut is worth €125 annually in gross terms to most public servants, with those taxed at the standard rate enjoying the greater gain in terms of take-home pay boost

Section 12 of the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Act 2013 also requires the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform to conduct a review of the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Acts. The review includes the measures introduced to provide for a Pension-related Deduction. I completed the statutory 2014 review on the 29 June 2014 and concluded that there is a need to continue to apply the Public Service Pension-related Deduction which applies to public service employees, including Local Authority staff.