Irish people are living longer, according to the latest survey conducted by the Central Statistics Office.
That is good news for those citizens anticipating a well-deserved retirement. But the message is less welcome to a Government struggling to cater for an ageing population. And, of course, costs are likely to rise for all workers in terms of pension contributions.
The most important message contained in the new figures is the need for coherent, long-term planning for a greying population across a range of Government Departments, from Finance to Health, Social Welfare, the Environment and Local Government. As things stand, cutbacks by one Department may cost another department a much greater amount of money, while seriously damaging the quality of life of affected persons.
In the past 100 years, the life-span of Irish men has risen from less than 50 to more than 75 years and for women to more than 80 years, largely as a result of falling infant mortality rates between 1946 and 1961. Men at 65 can now expect to live a further 15 years, while women may live 19 years. In spite of such advances, however, our European neighbours live a year longer on average.
There has been little public debate about the implications of these changes for the average citizen, although some precautionary steps have been taken by the Government. A National Pension Reserve Fund was established four years ago to minimise the future strain of maintaining an ageing population. New pension and AVC schemes were introduced in order to encourage workers to plan for retirement. In the last Budget, the retirement age of the great majority of entrants to the public service was raised to 65 years and made voluntary.
In the private sector, a fall in the value of equities caused huge problems for pension funds and, earlier this year, it was estimated that 80 per cent of them failed to meet minimum funding requirements. At the same time, companies were finding it increasingly difficult to fund traditional, defined-benefit pension schemes.
Ireland is fortunate in that its demographic profile is better balanced than other EU states. In spite of that, there is need for careful planning to ensure citizens enjoy a good quality of life in retirement.
A higher level of savings will be required. And better community healthcare and services must be provided. There has also been talk of raising the retirement age to 70 years in the private sector. Whatever happens, the first requirement for change is informed public debate.