Claire Kerrane (Roscommon-Galway, Sinn Fein)
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177. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform to provide an update on a claim (details supplied) made to his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18135/25]

Jack Chambers (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)
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The Single Public Service Pension Scheme is a statutory Public Service Career-Average Defined Benefit Pension Scheme, established on 1 January 2013 under the Public Service Pensions (Single Scheme and Other Provisions) Act 2012. It applies to all new entrant public servants.

The claim referenced relates to a group of individuals who are not public servants and therefore have no access to the Single Scheme. While there was a pay claim which was settled through the Workforce Relations Commission (WRC) in 2022, pension provision was not comprehended in that framework. The Department of Education indicated to Forsa that measures on pensions would relate to encouraging uptake of a private pension provision, either through the national auto-enrolment pension scheme under development by the Department of Social Protection which will target workers who currently have no private pension arrangements in place, or through greater use of existing pension arrangements by secretaries and schools.

Michael Cahill (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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178. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform to review an appeal by a person (details supplied) in County Kerry; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18251/25]

Kevin Moran (Longford-Westmeath, Independent)
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Skellig Michael is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in State Ownership. The conservation and presentation of the island is the responsibility of the Office of Public Works (OPW).

The OPW manages access to the Island by way of a boat landing permit system whereby a specific number of boat operators are granted permits to carry visitors to the Island.

The OPW is currently engaged in an open competition via the e-Tenders system to award permits to fifteen boat operators. Successful tenderers, subject to compliance with necessary Terms and Conditions, will be awarded a permit for a maximum of five consecutive seasons.

The invitation to tender for the boat permits was uploaded on e-tenders on the 12th December, 2024 and the evaluation has been completed in recent weeks. The Office of Public Works issued notifications regarding the results of the competition to all applicants on Thursday 27th March, 2025. As the competition is ongoing, the OPW is not in a position to comment further at this time.