Pensions - You're having a laugh

[DerKaiser]

Jaysus, DerKaiser, THAT'S lateral thinking! While I think your reasoning is wacky, the weekly Friday pint philosophizing session would be all the richer with your contributions.

As far a I know the only way Mary Hannafin can impact her own retirement income would be through public sector pension reform.

In any case, it's very lateral thinking to say we cannot have our elected representatives taking decisions that don't affect them personally!!!

And yes, it often gets wacky from 5.30 on a friday!!

 

[sunrock]

It is quite O.K. to expect someone with a secure income to make provision for their old age.However lots of people do not have a steady secure income, especially in recessions.So we can look forward to alot of poorer older people in the future.Reducing the pension rate makes more sense than upping the pension age.

 

[capall]

You see people who are unemployed now in their forties saying who is going to employ me now at this age. Employers do all in their power to shift "dead wood" ,people whose jobs can be done by younger ,more enthusiastic less expensive employees.
Go into any major multinational now and you see very few people over 55 who are not in very senior positions
I dont see that it is an option for most people to work till 68 even when they want to
Unless you are self employed or in a government job

What has opposition said about this ?

I think it is a good idea to make all employees and employers to pay into a fund from the time you start working , and you should have the option to invest in straight bank deposits with no mgt fees etc
Pension funds and stock markets have been disastrous for alot of people

 

[z107]

Are the government giving the banks our Pension Reserve Fund?

If they are handing our pension money over to the banks, this is probably why the retirement age is being raised. The last 3 years of our working lives, we will be working for AIB & BoI etc.

 

[StevieC]

Are the government giving the banks our Pension Reserve Fund?

If they are handing our pension money over to the banks, this is probably why the retirement age is being raised. The last 3 years of our working lives, we will be working for AIB & BoI etc.

The raising of the pension age has nothing to do with the banking problem... it has to do with all of us living longer and in the future there being a larger ratio of retired people to working people.

Even if there was no banking problem, the government would have to tackle this issue. It would not be fair to burden future generations with huge tax hikes to pay for our pensions. State pensions are paid out on a pay as you go basis, ie from current tax take, its not like our PRSI pays for our pensions, its paying for current pensioners.

 

[Bronte]

The options are:
1) Keep the pension age as is and reduce the amount
2) Raise the age from which it is payable
3) Tax the hell out of people throughout their working lives

There's a lot of reactionary comment here about how inept the government is and how evil pension providers are.

.

Your 3 points are correct. Something has to be done. BUT would you trust the government who cannot manage anything or the pension providers who are the worst in the world with your money?

I'd rather burn it. In fact I'd probably be as wise to do that as trust the 'investment' institutions.

 

[DerKaiser]

Your 3 points are correct. Something has to be done. BUT would you trust the government who cannot manage anything or the pension providers who are the worst in the world with your money?

I'd rather burn it. In fact I'd probably be as wise to do that as trust the 'investment' institutions.

This decision is nothing to do with the current government other than their guts and ability to engage in measures of sensible long term planning that would be postponed by a populist government.

These decisions relate to the next 20 to 50 years. Sensible planning now on this measure will be felt long after the current crises are long forgotten.

Balancing the books in terms of current deficits over time cannot be detracted from because of recent economic mismanagement.

Out of interest, who do you trust? Not the government, not the banks, not the insurance companies obviously?

Are we an incompetent nation of untrustworthy characters?

Can you not back the people of Ireland to make a half decent stab of electing a reasonable government and running a decent economy over the next 20 to 50 years?

Is it an inherently Irish thing?

Should we all just emigrate and hope to spread out thinly enough that we don't contaminate the rest of the world?

 

[Firefly]

This decision is nothing to do with the current government other than their guts and ability to engage in measures of sensible long term planning that would be postponed by a populist government.

These decisions relate to the next 20 to 50 years. Sensible planning now on this measure will be felt long after the current crises are long forgotten.

I'd love to agree with you, but why then was this not implemented in the good old Celtic Tiger days when it would have been IMO easily accepted?

 

[Shawady]

This decision is nothing to do with the current government other than their guts and ability to engage in measures of sensible long term planning that would be postponed by a populist government.

If the government have guts why not cut the state pension and public sector pensions by 6% in line with deflation? Because they got their hand slapped with the medical card issue and they know they will be out of government if they do.

 

[Bronte]

This decision is nothing to do with the current government other than their guts and ability to engage in measures of sensible long term planning that would be postponed by a populist government.
These decisions relate to the next 20 to 50 years. Sensible planning now on this measure will be felt long after the current crises are long forgotten.
Balancing the books in terms of current deficits over time cannot be detracted from because of recent economic mismanagement.

Out of interest, who do you trust? Not the government, not the banks, not the insurance companies obviously?

Are we an incompetent nation of untrustworthy characters?

Can you not back the people of Ireland to make a half decent stab of electing a reasonable government and running a decent economy over the next 20 to 50 years?

1. The current government have been the government for most of the term of the Irish state and their record in terms of long term proper economic management is exactly what?
2. Yes sensible economic planning would be benificial in 20 or so years. But we're not going to get sensible economic planning, nor proper financial regulation nor banks that won't be bailed out in 10 years ago currently or in 10 years time, nor economic policies that pander to those who pay those in power as for example the great economic planning that went into the last 10 years of building houses, car parking places, section 23's section 50's etc. We'll have exactly the same fiasco of governments bailing out pension providers in 20 or 30 years if our history shows us anything.
3. When do you think the current crisis will recide from our memories, how long before we stop paying for NAMA?
4. Show me the half decent Irish statesman with sound economic policies and the further economic interest of the Irish people who will get the job done and I will back him.

If I put my savings into a deposit account I have a better chance of getting my money back than I do if I trust the government the banks or an insurance company. You show me the percentage of people who have invested in private pensions for the last 30 or 40 years who are getting a decent return on their investment?