Emer Higgins (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

This correspondence refers to the 2021 Private Members Bill on Industrial Relations (Provisions in Respect of Pension Entitlements of Retired Workers) sponsored by a number of Deputies. It is a matter for the Deputies to progress the Bill.

Last April, the then Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Simon Coveney, met with a group of representatives of Retired Associations in relation to the draft Bill. At this meeting, a number of issues were raised with regard to the statutory protections in place for retired workers who have defined benefit contributory pensions. As the issues raised relate to pensions schemes and the operation of the Pensions Acts, Minister Coveney wrote to the Minister for Social Protection, Minister Humphreys, as the Minister who has the policy responsibility for the Pensions Acts.

If a person is in receipt of an occupational pension, their relationship is with the trustees of the pension fund. They no longer have an employment relationship with their former employer. As the Deputy will be aware, trustees have statutory and fiduciary duties to act in the best interests of all members of a fund.

It is the responsibility of the Office of the Pensions Ombudsman to act in an independent and impartial means of resolving complaints alleging financial loss occasioned by an act of maladministration and disputes of fact or law in relation to occupational pensions schemes and Personal Retirement Savings Accounts.

The Joint Committee on Enterprise Trade and Employment met in public session on the 25 January 2023 to discuss detailed scrutiny of the Bill. Following this meeting, my Department issued a detailed brief to the Committee as requested and no further correspondence has been received by the Committee.

It remains my position that any amendment to the legislation governing the pension rights of retired persons is not an industrial relations issue.

Emer Higgins (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The Government is acutely aware that many businesses in all sectors are facing difficulties due to the cost-of-living crisis.

With that in mind, as part of Budget 2024, the Government signed off on a package of €257 million for the Increased Cost of Business (ICOB) grant as a vital measure for small and medium businesses. Local Authorities, funded through the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment, are administering the grant to qualifying businesses on behalf of the Department. Local Authorities have written to all rate paying businesses with details of how to register for the grant and it is a very simple process for businesses to verify their details through an online portal.

The grant has been open for registrations since 14 March. The closing date for registrations for the ICOB grant is 1 May 2024. I urge all eligible businesses to register for this grant as soon as they receive a letter from their Local Authority. The sooner a business registers the sooner their details will be verified and the grant will be paid out. Payments will be made to eligible businesses in the coming weeks.

On March 5th 2024, the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment; and the Department of Social Protection published an assessment of the combined impact of proposed measures to improve working conditions in Ireland. Reflecting the findings of this assessment, there are a range of measures being brought forward to assist businesses in adjusting to these increased costs as well as more generally to improve cost competitiveness of firms. These include:

• Preparation of an options paper on the application of the lower (8.8%) rate of Employer PRSI contribution, and the National Training Fund;
• A range of measures to reduce red tape and the administrative burden on business including an enhanced SME test, and;
• Accelerating the roll out of a fully functioning National Enterprise Hub.

I would encourage businesses to contact their Local Enterprise Office (LEO), who acts as a ‘first stop shop’ providing expert advice and guidance, financial assistance, and offer a ‘signposting’ service for all government supports available to business owners throughout the country.

Ultimately, any responsibility for VAT lies with my colleague Mr. Michael McGrath T.D. Minister for Finance. In terms of reverting the VAT rate from 13.5% to 9%, it is important to recognise that VAT reductions, even temporary VAT reductions, do have a cost to the Exchequer. The Department of Finance and Revenue have raised significant administrative and operational concerns attached with applying different VAT rates for different sectors.

In early February, Minister McGrath announced that the interest rate applying to warehoused tax will be reduced to 0%. Revenue will provide businesses with every possible flexibility in managing the payment of their warehoused debt, including the level of down payment and extended payment duration, having regard to the circumstances of each individual business. I would encourage businesses to engage with Revenue at the earliest opportunity to discuss their individual circumstances and agree arrangements to address their liabilities.

In relation to the issue of the Shadow Economy, Revenue has mechanisms in place to tackling such activity. A key component of this, is the reporting of shadow economy activity to relevant State agencies via the Report Form - Shadow Economy (Tax Evasion).

There is also a non-statutory multi-agency group, the Hidden Economy Monitoring Group (HEMG) which provides a forum for participants who are committed to tackling shadow economy activity to exchange views and insights as well as proposing new initiatives and ideas to combat such activity.