Alan Kelly (Tipperary, Labour)
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101. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality her plans to introduce legislation which demands a mandatory statutory retirement age in the private sector; the expected timelines for enactment of same; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [19148/17]

Noel Rock (Dublin North West, Fine Gael)
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144. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality her plans to introduce legislation which demands a mandatory statutory retirement age in the private sector; the timelines for enactment; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [19687/17]

David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 101 and 144 together.

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). In my role in the Department of Justice and Equality, I have responsibility for equality legislation which allows 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.