No end to national anger over pension inequality

UNLIKE an Olympic swimmer bruised from multiple painful ‘cuppings’, the Irish taxpayer feels absolutely no benefit from the draining sacrifices they have made over the past decade. It all came to a head this week when figures released about public sector pensions revealed a gargantuan difference to those in the private sector. The figures are astounding. The top 500 public sector pensioners – many of them much younger than 60 – are on guaranteed pensions for the rest of their lives of over €100,000 per year. These pensions cost €50million per year and are paid for out of everyone else’s income tax. Many of these are ex-politicians who held senior rank as the country went down the toilet.

What I heard all this week on Liveline, whether the politicians like it or not, is that there is a great divide between the vast majority of pensioners who worked hard for many decades, in often humdrum jobs, and those in the public sector who have guaranteed weekly payments for the rest of their lives.

Many pensioners told me that despite saving weekly from their meagre earnings, they now find themselves close to penury because of the economic collapse, cuts in many private pension schemes, and the ensuing government actions.

When they see retired – and much younger – politicians on pensions which are simply impossible to buy, they almost weep with anger.

They stood by helplessly as the Government broke into their private pensions and simply robbed €2.393billion from their weekly savings, which went into the central Exchequer and funded, among other things, golden pensions for politicians.

On the other hand, a legislative ‘glitch’ means that more than 300,000 defined-benefit public sector pensioners are getting higher payments, even though the public was told something completely different by Government ministers. No-one begrudges anyone a modest pension, but these are paid for from day-to-day income tax returns.

Yet we hear that four out of every five defined benefit private pension schemes are in trouble, and Minister for Public Expenditure Paschal Donohoe made the Government position on this clear when he said this week that they could sink or swim – alone.

While those who complain, like the many Liveline callers this week, are now being criticised for ‘undermining politics’, in truth it is politicians themselves who are undertaking this task with gusto.

The daily Dáil ‘travel to work’ allowance is a scandal, and is soon to be challenged in court by a concerned citizen, John Wolfe.

With the background clamour of massively increased car insurance, tolls and petrol hikes – none of which a Government minister ever has to pay – I hope they can understand that while the temperatures may not be increasing for those on holidays in Ireland, the anger of the bedraggled populace definitely is!