Garda Siochána Retired Members Association (GSRMA), have been continuously
pursuing the objective of having our pensions fully restored. With that in
mind our General Secretary communicated with each and every TD, all 166 and
each member of Seanad Eireann. These communications, from General
Secretary, were prior to and after the introduction of FEMPI Act 2015 in
Oireachtas. Each GSRMA member should be aware that almost all TD’s ignored
these communications, and did not respond to GSRMA.
The exceptions to this rule, was Deputy Sean Fleming, TD Fianna Fail, and a
small number of TD’s who simply passed the correspondence to either the
Minister for Finance Minister for Public Sector Reform.
What our General Secretary had hoped to achieve was the total removal of all
anomalies within the FEMPI Acts, to ensure fairness and equality within the
application of the Acts in question which would have resulted in increases
in pension to all GSRMA members. Likewise the General Secretary set out a
number of amendments to the FEMPI Bill 2015 which again would have resulted
in increases to our pension, and its total restoration within a shorter
timeframe than envisaged by Government. Deputy Sean Fleming moved many of
these amendments, together with many of his own and all were rejected within
the Oireachtas, on the floor of the house and within Committee stage of the
moving of the legislation in question.
Deputy Jim Daly TD also made representations on our behalf, and Minister for
Public Sector Reform, Brendan Howlin, TD wrote back to Deputy Daly on the
15th. December 2015, setting out why he has rejected the proposed amendments
as set out by your General Secretary.
Members should note that direct representations were had by Mr Willie
Gleeson, then Vice President of AGSI to Deputy Daly TD, as a serving member
of An Garda Siochana and on behalf of the GSRMA organisation, as Willie was
about to retire. The letter as now published has come to GSRMA through
Willie Gleeson, and we thank him for his efforts on our behalf.
I urge each member of GSRMA to read the Minister’s letter as now published,
in the page and a half of text there is little hope extended to retired
members of An Garda Siochana as to the full restoration of their hard earned
pensions, but a great deal of self-justification as to his actions and that
of Government in the moving and passing of various FEMPI legislation since
2010.
Each and every day An Taoiseach and all members of this Government are
telling us the emergency is over, yet we continue to live under Financial
Emergency Legislation, so the question is WHY?
You will all have received your January pension payment and will note the
miniscule increase in your take home pension. By 2019 there will be a
gradual increase in this type of annual slow painful restoration in your
pension. Unfortunately many of us will not see 2019, so for some members
they will never get the benefit of any restoration.
Remember the General Election is about to be called. The long anticipated
date is eagerly awaited. Many of these TD’s and many new potential TD’s
will be calling on you for your vote. Remember the question of your Pension
Restoration. From now until April we will get many empty promises of
restoration.
This information is passed to all GSRMA members so that all are aware, that
efforts as to restoration are ongoing, but that brick wall seems to be
around every corner.
Collectively we may improve on that situation.
Paschal Feeney
General Secretary
Click on Link to Read –Minister Howlin’s Letter
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