Clare Daly (Dublin North, United Left)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

15. To ask the Minister for Social Protection if she has undertaken analysis of the impact of changes to section 50 of the Pensions Acts allowing trustees to reduce payments to pensioners. [17327/15]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

Section 50 of the Pensions Act was amended in 2009 and again in 2013. These changes were designed to spread the risk of scheme underfunding across all scheme members and beneficiaries in any consideration of an application by the trustees of the scheme to restructure scheme benefits. It is a matter for the trustees of a scheme, who are required under trust law to act in the best interests of all scheme members, to determine how the provisions in section 50 of the Act might be applied.

The most recent analysis was carried out in November 2014 and indicates that over the period since 2009, there were 106 applications made by the trustees of a defined benefit pensions schemes to the Pensions Authority to restructure scheme benefits. 78% of these applications related to an adjustment to post retirement increases in benefits; 8% did not impact on the benefits of existing pensioners; the remaining 14% of applications adjusted the normal pension age or the lump sum at retirement. In one case the core pensioner benefits were reduced.

At end of 2014, there were 778 active defined benefit pension schemes subject to the funding requirements of the Pensions Act. The application of section 50 impacted on less than 14% of these schemes.

While I will continue to monitor the application of section 50 of the Pensions Act on an ongoing basis, I expect that the measures I have put in place will support schemes achieve a sustainable position and decrease the likelihood of recourse to its provisions.