Kildare based academic to sit on Government pension commission

A Kildare based academic has been chosen to sit on a new Government Commission on Pensions.

Maynooth University lecturer, Dr. Aedín Doris, who specialises in labour economics is one of those who will  sit on the Commission.

 The Minister for Social Protection, Heather Humphreys, has  secured Government approval to establish the Commission on Pensions.

 The Commission, which will be chaired by Josephine Feehily, will examine sustainability and eligibility issues for State pension arrangements and will outline options for the Government to address issues such as qualifying age, contribution rates, total contributions and eligibility requirements.

The Commission will submit a report on its work, findings, options and recommendations to the Minister by June 30, 2021.

 Minister Humphreys said the Government is acutely aware of the challenges the State faces in terms of ensuring our State Pensions System is sustainable when it comes to managing our public finances but this is not the only consideration at hand. “The State Pension is the bedrock of the Irish pension system. It is extremely effective at reducing poverty for pensioners and I want to ensure that this remains the case into the future.”

 Josephine Feehily, Chair of the Commission on Pensions (formerly chair of the Office of the Revenue Commissioners and formerly chair of the Policing Authority of Ireland) said that for many, the State Pension represents all or most of their weekly income.  “I am conscious that talks of increasing the State Pension age can be a cause of great concern, given that the mandatory retirement age for many in the private sector is 65.  This Commission will examine various options that can help with the sustainability of the State Pension system, not just the pension age.  Importantly, it will also consider the impacts of these various options, and will engage with stakeholders as part of its work.” 

 Others appointed to the Commission are  Ita Mangan, Barrister, Chair of the Citizens Information Board, Chair of the Board of Age & Opportunity, Member of the Board of the Irish Hospice Foundation and formerly Chair of the Advisory Group on Tax and Social Welfare; Roma Burke, Actuary and Partner with Lane, Clark & Peacock, member of the Pensions Council, member of the Society of Actuaries of Ireland and former Chair of its Pensions Committee, independent non-executive director of Dublin Simon Community; Seamus Coffey, Economist, Lecturer in UCC, member of the external advisory board to the Irish Government Economic and Evaluation Service and former chair of the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council; Jack Keyes, Principal Advisor for Age Friendly Ireland (Housing and Public Realm), Chair of Pyrite Remediation Board and outgoing Chair Readers Advisory Committee National Library of Ireland, former County Manager, Senior Advisor in policy formulation and implementation;  Ian Power, CEO of SpunOut.ie, member of the Board of the Citizens Information Board (CIB), member of the Board of Community Foundation for Ireland, and formerly President of the National Youth Council of Ireland; Anne Vaughan, former Deputy Secretary General of the Department of Social Protection, former member of the Pensions Authority, and current Chair of the National Statistics Board, representative to be nominated by ICTU and a representative to be nominated by IBEC.