Written answers
Tuesday, 21 April 2015
Department of Finance
Public Sector Pensions Data
Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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313. To ask the Minister for Finance if he will provide in tabular form the number of retired public service pensions in payment in each year from 2008 to 2014, under the aegis of his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16053/15]
Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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The information requested by the Deputy for the agencies under the aegis of my Department is set out in the tables below:
National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA):
Year | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Number of retired public service pensions in payment | 6 | 12 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 16 |
Central Bank:
Year | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Number of retired public service pensions in payment (as at year end) | 243 | 282 | 311 | 347 | 369 | 382 | 469 |
The number of retired civil service pensions in payment for the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General and the Revenue Commissioners for the years 2008 to 2014 are included within Parliamentary Question No. 315 answered by the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform.
Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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314. To ask the Minister for Finance the total value of public sector pensions in payment; the average public sector pension in 2014, under the aegis of his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16063/15]
Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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The information requested by the Deputy for the agencies under the aegis of my Department is set out in the tables below:
National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA):
Total value of public sector pensions in payment | Average public sector pension in 2014 |
---|---|
€1,316,738 | €82,296 |
Central Bank:
Total value of public sector pensions in payment | Average public sector pension in 2014 |
---|---|
€9,298,000 | €19,825.16 |
The total value of pensions in payment and the average pension amount in 2014 for civil servants in the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General and the Revenue Commissioners are included within Parliamentary Question 15400/15 answered by the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform.
Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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315. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if he will provide, in tabular form, the number of retired Civil Service pensions in payment in each year from 2008 to 2014, under the aegis of his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15399/15]
Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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The following table sets out the number of retired civil service pensions in payment each year from 2008 to 2014.
2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Number of retired civil service pensions in payment | 15,245 | 17,005 | 18,122 | 18,617 | 19,974 | 20,314 | 21,128 |
Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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316. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the total value of Civil Service pensions in payment; the average Civil Service pension in 2014, under the aegis of his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15400/15]
Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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Total pensions in payment for established civil servants in 2014 amounted to €324 m, corresponding to an average pension amount of €24,000. Pensions in respect of other civil service pensioners (for example unestablished retired civil servants and survivors) amounted to approximately €65 million, or an average pension amount of about €8,700.
Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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317. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the amount raised in 2014 from the public service pension reduction applied to pensions of €12,001 to €24,000, from those who retired on or before 29 February 2012, and those who retired from 1 March 2012; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15401/15]
Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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318. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the amount raised in 2014 from the public service pension reduction applied to pensions of €24,001 to €60,000 from those who retired on or before 29 February 2012, and those who retired from 1 March 2012; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15402/15]
Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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319. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the amount raised in 2014 from the public service pension reduction applied to pensions of €60,001 to €100,000 from those who retired on or before 29 February 2012, and those who retired from 1 March 2012; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15403/15]
Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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320. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the amount raised in 2014 from the public service pension reduction applied to pensions of over €100,000 from those who retired on or before 29 February 2012, and those who retired from 1 March 2012; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15404/15]
Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 317 to 320, inclusive, together.
In my last review of the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (FEMPI) Acts laid before the Houses of the Oireachtas in June 2014, the Public Service Pension Reduction (PSPR) was estimated to save in the region of €125 million annually.
Public service pensions awarded to or in respect of persons retiring or reaching preserved pension age from 1 March 2012 onwards are based on lower final salaries than for earlier-awarded pensions, insofar as they factor in the pay reductions, ranging from 5% to 15%, imposed across the public service with effect from 1 January 2010 under the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (No. 2) Act 2009.
To reflect the impact of these lower final salaries on more recent pension awards, PSPR, as originally legislated for commencement on 1 January 2011, did not apply to pensions awarded on or after 1 March 2012.
Subsequently, as provided for under the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Act 2013, and effective 1 July 2013, further pension decreases ranging from 2% to 5% were imposed on all public service pensions above €32,500. These decreases were implemented by introducing PSPR at special low rates on post-February 2012 pensions, while at the same time adjusting upwards the PSPR rates applying to earlier-awarded pensions.
The best available estimate of the requested breakdown of the annual PSPR saving, based on pension distribution in 2012, is provided below:
Pensions awarded to or in respect of public servants retiring or reaching preserved pension age on or before 29 February 2012:
Pension levelEstimated Saving
€12,000 - €24,000 €10.4 million
€24,000 - €60,000 €93.7 million
> €60,000€18.7 million
Pensions awarded to or in respect of public servants retiring or reaching preserved pension age on or after 1 March 2012:
Pension levelEstimated Saving
€12,000 - €24,000 €0
€24,000 - €60,000 €2.0 million
> €60,000€0.4 million
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