HOLDING POLITICIANS TO ACCOUNT

As the dust settles and the results are all counted, we come to the the end of the election process. Now, begins the job of the negotiation teams and the ‘horse trading’ to determine the make up of the 34^th Government. It is expected we will not know the outcome of this until December, possibly January.

What we do know is, once this is complete and a Government agreed, the work begins on a Programme for Government. We will remind the parties of the commitments they made to older people in their Manifestos and in headline grabbing statements in the run up to the election. We will demand that the promises to older people are kept.

Many older people were influenced by the promise to ensure a pension that took people above the poverty line and allowed some breathing space in their income. Both Fianna Fail and Fine Gael along with some other parties  offered an increase in the State Pension, in the run up to the election. We will remind this new government of this and the need to offer a secure income linked to  average wage.

We will seek meetings with the respective Government parties asking them to outline the implementation plan of the pledges they made:

FIANNA FAIL Manifesto Nov 2024

• Increase the State pension to at least €350 per week and maintain the retirement age at 66

FINE GAEL Manifesto Nov 2024

• Raise the State Pension to €350 over the lifetime of the next government, ensuring financial security for our seniors.
• Appoint a Commissioner for Positive Ageing: This role will advocate for the needs and rights of older citizens.
• Appoint a standalone Minister of State for Older People.

The Irish Senior Citizens Parliament along with the Age Alliance and Age Action have been calling for a Commissioner for Ageing and Older People as a key determinant, to ensuring Ireland’s ageing demographic are planned for and included in policy making.

We need to remember that Ireland is running a budget surplus of at least €23 billion. (RTE  Sept 2024)