As Minister for Defence, I am aware that superannuation arrangements for the Defence Forces differ in a number of key respects to the wider public service. Some notable distinct features include lower mandatory retirement ages or upper service limits, earlier ages with entitlement to immediate pension benefit, and atypical faster rates of benefit accrual. These all serve to support military manpower policy and operational requirements
The specific occupational pension scheme terms of members of the Permanent Defence Force depend primarily on the date a person first joins the public service. They fall mainly into the following three categories:
• those who joined before April 2004;
• those who joined on or after 1st April 2004 and before 1st January 2013; and
• those who join on or after 1st January 2013 as members of the Single Public Service Pension Scheme.
I wish to draw your attention to the latter cohort and emphasise that all new entrants to the public service, including members of the Permanent Defence Force, who are hired after 1 January 2013 are members of the Single Public Service Pension Scheme.
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. The Single Scheme was established to place publicly funded retirement benefits on a more sustainable footing in the context of longer life expectancies.
Members of the Permanent Defence Force, firefighters, members of An Garda Síochána and prison officers are categorised as members of the uniformed accrual cohort of Single Scheme members. These uniformed grades have certain enhanced benefits that other members of the Single Scheme do not have, in recognition of their earlier retirement age, such as early payment of scheme benefits and being able to accrue more Single Scheme benefits over shorter public service careers in these roles.
Once members of the uniformed accrual cohort reach their normal retirement age, they can retire at that age and receive their occupational retirement benefits accrued at a higher rate, including their retirement lump-sum and pension benefit payments. These benefit payments are separate from, and in addition to, any future entitlement that they may have to the State contributory pension, which is administered by the Department of Social Protection.
While members of the Permanent Defence Forces and other uniformed accrual members have mandatory retirement ages lower than the State pension contributory retirement age, they are in a position to work in other employment in the intervening period while fully accessing their Single Scheme pension benefits, subject to abatement, where applicable, if said employment is within the public service.
In 2024, in recognition of changing demographics and a desire for each member of the fast-accrual category to continue working for longer, the Government enacted Part 11 of the Courts, Civil Law, Criminal Law and Superannuation (Miscellaneous Provisions) 2024. The legislation allows for an increase in the mandatory retirement age for certain uniformed staff to 62 years for those who choose to avail of it.
Separately, my Department also worked to increase the prescribed mandatory retirement age to 62 years for all ranks in the Permanent Defence Force which previously had a mandatory retirement age of less than 62.
The legislative changes introduced in the Courts, Civil Law, Criminal Law and Superannuation (Miscellaneous Provisions) 2024 allow uniformed members of the single scheme to continue accruing referrable amounts towards their occupational pensions for the additional years now worked. These members will continue accruing pension benefits on a fast-accrual basis up to the age of 60.
An issue that is raised by the single scheme uniformed members is access to a supplementary pension, which exists in pre-existing public service pension schemes. Supplementary pensions have never been a feature of the Single Scheme, nor is it envisaged that they will be. The wider context, which the Deputy can appreciate, is to try to have some sustainability in the overall pension system, which has been well flagged by many external and independent experts.
Military occupational pension (superannuation) schemes operate within the broader context and framework of public service pension policy, as determined by Government. My colleague, the Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation has responsibility for public service pension policy. Amendments or improvements to Defence Forces pensions schemes or pension levels, in particular any changes in relation to the Single Public Service Pension Scheme (fast accrual for the uniformed branches) can only be made by consultation with, and subject to the approval of, the Department of Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform and Digitalisation.
