John Curran (Dublin Mid West, Fianna Fail)
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512. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection her estimate as to the cost of an auto enrolment scheme in each of the years 2022 to 2028 to cover both administration costs and the cost of the State of paying €1 for each €3 paid into a pension scheme by a member; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38890/18]

Regina Doherty (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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Pensions reform is a Government priority and the plans to achieve this are set out in the Roadmap for Pensions Reform 2018-2023, which was published last February. Among the key commitments contained in this plan is to develop, by 2022, a new ‘Automatic Enrolment’ (AE) supplementary retirement savings system for employees without pensions coverage.

AE will see a transition from the current and purely voluntary supplementary pension system to one which will, subject to certain parameters, automatically enrol employees into a quality assured retirement savings system. This reform, where the saver will maintain the freedom of choice to opt-out, will encourage long term saving and asset accumulation amongst those who may otherwise suffer a reduction in living standards at retirement. It will increase the wellbeing, financial security and independence of future retirees.

Last month, the Government published a ‘Strawman’ proposal for an AE supplementary retirement savings system and commenced a public consultation process on the design and operational structure of the AE system. The ‘Strawman’ proposal is a high level draft proposal designed to prompt and generate discussion and improve ideas. It should not, in any way, be construed as Government’s confirmation of what form AE will ultimately take.

The goal of publishing the ‘Strawman’ is to help interested parties conceptualise plausible approaches to AE and to facilitate a focused policy debate around key design issues, such as administrative arrangements and organisational approach, target membership, minimum contribution rates and State financial incentives.

The feedback received during the consultation process will be used to inform future Government decisions and assist in determining a preferred operational structure and design parameters for AE. To this end, as the 'Roadmap for Pensions Reform' makes clear, further detailed evidence building is required to identify the potential costs attached to any options considered. Accordingly, it is not possible at this juncture to estimate such costs. These costs should become more apparent once this work is complete and preferred options are being fully advanced.

I hope this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.