Labour Dail motion seeks deferral of pension levy, re-opening of talks
Issued : Friday 13 February, 2009
Statement by Eamon Gilmore TD
Leader of the Labour Party, Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs & Trade
The Dail will next week debate a Labour Party Private Members Motion calling on the government not to proceed with the planned legislation to impose the pension levy on public servants and urging the Coalition to re-enter negotiations with the social partners with a view to reaching agreement on a fair and equitable set of proposals that would meet the adjustment of €2bn already agreed between the government and the social partners in the Draft Framework for a Pact for Stabilisation, Social Solidarity and Economic Renewal.
The Labour motion describes the levy as 'unfair in that it places an unacceptable burden on public servants on modest incomes' and will apply to all income, including income which is not reckonable for pension purposes. (Full text of motion attached).
The Labour Party Leader, Eamon Gilmore said today: "Nobody can be in any doubt about the level of anger felt by many public servants since the breakdown of the social partnership talks last week and the government's decision to unilaterally impose this levy'
"Public servants are angry that the levy will be imposed on those with the lowest earnings, that it will be imposed on all income, including income which is not reckonable for pension purposes, and that it is structured in such a way that some workers will pay a greater proportion of their income than higher earning colleagues.
"Public servants also believe, with justification, that they are being singled out for the imposition of a penal levy when those who contributed so much to the current economic crisis are being bailed out by the state.
"The Labour Party believes that the measures required to deal with the current economic crisis must be based on the principles of fairness and equity, and that people should be asked to contribute according to their means. I believe that most public servants would share this view. However, they are saying that public servants did not create this problem and should not therefore be singled out for unfair treatment as if they were the whole problem.
"It is now clear that public servants and the government are on a collision course and unless some steps are taken to resolve the impasse there is a real danger of industrial relations conflict. This is the last thing the country needs in the current climate.
"Public servants should not be made scapegoats for the shocking loss of jobs we have seen in the private sector over the past year. Labour will resist efforts to drive a wedge between employees in the public and private sectors. Workers should stand together to defend their common interest, to defend incomes and work standards and to press the government to introduce measures to save jobs and put people back to work.
"I hope that our motion will cause the government to see sense, that they will not proceed with the legislation which is now planned for Thursday next and return to the negotiating table to secure an agreement acceptable to all parties.".
NOTICE OF MOTION
That Dail Eireann:
Believes
1) that the measures required to deal with the current economic crisis must be based on the principles of fairness and equity;
2) that those who contributed most to the crisis should be required to contribute most to a solution and that people should be asked to contribute according to their ability to pay;
3) that irresponsible lending practices by the banks and reckless speculation made a major contribution to the economic problems we are now facing and that the government has failed to take required measures to remove senior bank executives and board members responsible for this and to adequately cap pay and remuneration packages;
4) that measures should be taken to end the practice whereby people living and conducting business in this country can avoid paying taxes by a phoney tax exile status and to end the various tax shelters and relief schemes that facilitate tax avoidance by wealthy individuals;
Deplores the attempts to scapegoat public service workers and to create divisions between those who work in the public and private sectors;
Regrets the manner in which the negotiations with the social partners were handled by the government and particularly the failure of the government to table specific proposals on public service pensions until the eleventh hour, leaving no time to reach agreement;
Believes that the pension levy unilaterally announced by the government is unfair in that it places an unacceptable burden on public servants on modest incomes, including those who are so poorly paid as to qualify for Family Income Supplement;
Notes that no account is taken of the differing arrangements for pension and social welfare contributions in the public sector and that anomalies in the way in which the levy is structured will mean that some public servants on low pay will lose a greater proportion of income than somebody on higher pay;
Regards the decision to impose the levy on all income, including income which is not reckonable for pension purposes, to be fundamentally unjust;
Recognises that public servants are willing to play their part in economic recovery and in the stabilisation of the public finances on a basis that is fair and equitable;
Therefore:
Calls on the government to suspend the introduction of legislation to impose the levy and to re-enter negotiations with the social partners with a view to reaching agreement on a fair and equitable set of proposals that would meet the adjustment of €2bn already agreed between the government and the social partners in the Draft Framework for a Pact for Stabilisation, Social Solidarity and Economic Renewal.
