Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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660. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the details of the reversal of cuts to date to the pensions of public service pensioners; the schedule of future reversals that have been agreed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [19164/17]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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The particular measure affecting public service pensions under the financial emergency legislation is the Public Service Pension Reduction (PSPR), which was introduced on 1 January 2011 under the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Act 2010.

PSPR reduces the pay-out value of those public service pensions whose with pre-PSPR values above specified thresholds. It does so in a progressively structured way which has a proportionately greater effect on higher value pensions. At all times, public service pensions up to a value of at least €12,000 have been unaffected by PSPR, while a higher exemption threshold of at least €32,500 has applied to pensions awarded to persons who retire from 1 March 2012 onwards.

PSPR is being significantly reversed in three stages under FEMPI 2015, with PSPR-affected pensioners getting pension increases via substantial restoration of the PSPR cuts on 1 January 2016, 1 January 2017 and 1 January 2018 as follows:

- On 1 January 2016, increases in the annual pension thresholds for PSPR application were activated. These exemption threshold increases fully removed PSPR from a significant number of pensions with relatively lower values, while those pensions which continued to be impacted by PSPR received a boost of €400 per year.

- On 1 January 2017, additional PSPR amelioration, acting principally via further exemption threshold increases, fully removed PSPR from another significant tranche of public service pensioners, while at the same time boosting those pensions which remain affected by PSPR by up to €500 per year.

- On 1 January 2018, the third phase of PSPR amelioration will ensure that all PSPR-impacted pensions with values up to €34,132 will be fully restored, meaning that PSPR will no longer affect such pensions, while those pensions which continue to be impacted by PSPR will get a boost of, in most cases, €780 per year.

At 2015 year-end, public service pensions with annual values up to €12,000 were exempt from PSPR. Under the FEMPI 2015 three-stage roll-back, which I have outlined, on 1 January 2016, all pensions up to €18,700 became exempt from PSPR; from 1 January 2017, all pensions below €26,000 are now exempt from PSPR, and from 1 January 2018 all pensions up to €34,132 per year will be exempt from PSPR. Those pensioners not fully removed from the reach of PSPR will, in the majority of cases, benefit by up to €1,680 per year. The cost of these changes is estimated at about €90 million on a full-year basis from 2018.

As we move beyond FEMPI and PSPR unwinding towards more normal pay and pension setting conditions in the public service, the issue of how to adjust the post-award value of public service pensions through appropriate pay or other linkages will be considered by Government.