Martin Heydon (Kildare South, Fine Gael)
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50. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality her plans to review the minimum statutory retirement age for those persons willing and able to continue working; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17919/16]

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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In my capacity as Minister for Justice and Equality, I have responsibility for equality legislation, which provides for retirement ages in line with the relevant EU Directive provision that differences of treatment on the grounds of age are permissible if, within the context of national law, they are objectively and reasonably justified by a legitimate aim including legitimate employment policy, labour market and vocational training objectives, and if the means of achieving that aim are appropriate and necessary. The equality legislation also provides for the provision of fixed term contracts following contractual retirement age if, within the context of national law, the provision of such contracts is duly objectively and reasonably justified.

I have no ministerial responsibility for retirement age issues generally either in the public sector (where mandatory retirement ages are a feature of public sector employment law) or the private sector (where there is no statutory retirement age). The Deputy will be interested to know that the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform is leading a cross-Departmental working group on Fuller Working Lives which is examining the full range of working life and retirement issues and which is expected to report shortly.