Disastrous pension plan means Ireland is no place to grow old
■ Social Protection Minister Regina Doherty proposes that 40 years of social insurance contributions are required in order to be entitled to the full State pension. Somebody who works hard at their Leaving Certificate and proceeds to thirdlevel education might commence work at 23 or 24.
Do the arithmetic. It doesn’t leave a lot of wriggle room for career breaks to raise children, for example.
Many workers in various companies have had pension benefit cuts and pensions co-ordinated with the State pension, with the clear assumption that all workers would be entitled to the full State pension.
In the case of Aer Lingus workers, their personal illustrations were calculated on the assumption that each worker would attain full entitlement. Now this appears to be not the case, so what now for these workers who will see their work contracts expire when they are 65?
Their State pensions won’t kick in until they are 68 and now they are faced with the prospect of a cut to that pension payment. One can only speculate as to what they will have to do to survive in the interim.
Ireland is no place to grow old. The Government needs to pull back from this discriminatory and disastrous course, and plan adequately for future equitable pension provision.
Killian Brennan
Malahide Road, Dublin 17