Ministerial and private pensions gap revealed

THE ENORMOUS gap between ministerial pensions and private pensions has been dramatically outlined in research which shows a self-employed person would have to pay €20,000 each month into their pension fund to achieve a pension equal to that of a minister.

A TD only has to serve as a minister for 10 years before he is entitled to his full €114,600 annual, index-linked pension upon retirement. Ministers are also fully entitled to retire aged 50 and are not obliged to wait until 65 before they can claim their entitlement.

Having viewed the research completed by the Independent Trustee Company (ITC), Irish Brokers Association (IBA) has slammed the Government’s policy on pensions saying the contrast between Government perks and self-employed entitlements was staggering.