Brendan Griffin (Kerry South, Fine Gael)
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83. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if he will address a matter (details supplied) regarding public sector pensions; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [27893/15]

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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In January 2011, as part of the response to the fiscal crisis then faced by the country, an emergency measure to reduce public service pensions (Public Service Pension Reduction- PSPR) in payment was introduced. A further reduction for higher value pensions was introduced in July 2013. 

In welcoming the proposals developed between public service employers and the representative associations and unions for an extension to the Haddington Road Agreement out to September 2018, I indicated that I intended to bring forward separate proposals to Government to provide for a commensurate reduction in the Public Service Pension Reduction as it applies to retired public servants.

In line with my stated commitments I secured Government approval on the 16 June  last to move towards reducing the burden of public service pension reductions.  In overall terms the proposals agreed in relation to  PSPR will remove entirely the lower paid PSPR-affected pensioners (in general those with pre-PSPR pensions of up to €34,132) from the impact of the measure. For those PSPR-affected pensioners not completely removed from the PSPR "net", the changes, when fully implemented in 2018, will in most cases deliver a full year pension boost of €1,680, comprised of €400, €500 and €780 on 1 January 2016, 1 January 2017 and 1 January 2018 respectively. The proposals are designed to favour those on lower public service pensions to the greatest extent possible consistent with the requirement to amend the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest legislation on which the Public Service Pension Reduction is statutorily based.

Further details of these agreed measures can be found on my Department's website.