Pádraig O'Sullivan (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail)
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129. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if he has plans to review the current pension abatement arrangements for public service staff who complete their employment in one area of the public sector and, subsequently, take up employment in another area of the public service; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20693/23]

Pádraig O'Sullivan (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail)
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130. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the number of exemptions from pension abatement applied for and issued across all Departments under the Public Service Pensions Act 2012, for 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20694/23]

Pádraig O'Sullivan (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail)
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131. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the amount of revenue generated under pension abatement arrangements for 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20695/23]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 129 to 131, inclusive, together.

As the three questions relate to pension abatement, I am addressing them together. As the Deputy is aware, abatement is provided for under Section 52(1)-(5) of the Public Service Pensions (Single Scheme and Other Provisions) Act 2012. Section 52(4) of the Act provides for Ministerial discretion to grant a waiver of abatement. These waivers are subject to specific criteria being met and are generally granted only in exceptional circumstances and for a limited period of time. Each waiver application and business case is assessed on its merits.

The Deputy has queried the exemptions applied for and issued by this Department in respect of individual cases/applications for the years 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022. In this time period the Department of Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform has received 6 completed applications, covering 13 individuals and granted 3 waivers, with one application currently under consideration.

In addition, the Department of Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform granted a delegated waiver in the Education sector, which permits retired primary and secondary school teachers to be re-engaged by a school and their public service pensions are not subject to abatement for the first 50 days of re-employment in a given calendar year. This delegated waiver was granted in 2019 and is due to expire at the end of 2023.

Furthermore, at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic my Department received multiple applications from the Health Service Executive, via the Department of Health, for waivers of pension abatement for health care workers. A delegated waiver was granted to the HSE for 86 individuals in March 2020, which expired in June 2020, with an extension granted encompassing 114 individuals in July 2020. A further extension was granted in September 2020 as the crisis continued, which expired on 31 March 2021. Subsequently, we received further applications in respect of 8 individuals, of which 3 were granted in February 2022 and have expired and 5 of which are currently under consideration.

There is a saving to the Exchequer when a retired public servant is re-engaged in public service employment and their pension is subject to abatement. My Department does not hold a record of the level of savings each year. The onus is on the pensioner’s pension paying authority to keep a record of each public service pensioner whose pension is abated, including details of the level of abatement, the start date of such abatement, the end date, where applicable, and any changes to the level of abatement.

The Department of Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform has no plans to revise the rules of abatement of public service pensions. Abatement has always been a feature of public service pensions. The principle of abatement is longstanding and dates back to the Superannuation Act, 1834. The key change introduced by section 52 of the 2012 Act is that it extended the principle of abatement to retired public servants in receipt of a public service pension who secure another public service appointment in any public service body. A recent Department of Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform circular (Circular 24/2022) was issued as a guidance note on the how abatement should be applied and managed in the public service.