Decision To Raise Retirement Age A Last Resort

Increasing contributions to the National Insurance Board will be a last resort to address any shortfall in revenue. This is according to Minister in the Ministry of Finance, Brian Manning, responding to a question in the Senate as to what steps are being taken to address the subsidy to the National Insurance Board. Mr. Manning said the root cause of this was due to an ageing population, with the number of retirees increasing while contributors were decreasing. According to the 10th Actuarial Report, he said at least two recommendations were made, including an increase in contributions and increasing the retirement age. Mr. Manning noted that an increase in the retirement age was not a new recommendation, and would assist to solve some of the short term issues faced by the NIB. In March, Finance Minister Colm Imbert had indicated that Government was due to begin talks with unions with regards to increasing the retirement age.