TAOISEACH LEO VARADKAR told the Dáil during Leader’s Questions today that he can “absolutely assure” that there will be a further increase to the the state pension in Budget 2024.

An Taoiseach said that the exact figure has not been decided yet and will be discussed between now and October, when the budget for the following year is drafted by government.

Last year, the government increased the state pension by €12 per week, bringing the highest rate to €265.30 per week – depending on a citizen’s contribution through taxation.

The issue arose in the Dáil today after Independent TD Joan Collins asked the Taoiseach if the government was going to uphold “the promises made in the Pensions Reform Policy, a roadmap for pensions reform 2018-2023“.

Collins said the commitment would put our State pension at €310 per week, €45 more than it is now.

The policy, published by the Department of Social Protection in 2019, outlined six actions the government would take before the deadline of this year.

The actions included, reforming the state pension, building a new automatic enrollment savings system, improving regulation of the pension sector, supporting the operation of defined benefit schemes, reforming pensions for those in the public service and supporting fuller working lives.

The Taoiseach said he was “not exactly sure” that the government made a commitment to benchmarking the policy, while Deputy Collins claims they did.

Varadkar said that it “might not be the case” that the roadmap is included in the current Programme for Government, which Collins replied “It is 2018 to 2023″.

The current programme for Government from October 2020 does not mention the roadmap. Varadkar said there is a difference between something proposed and an actual government decision.

“It was a Roadmap for Pensions Reform 2018 -2023. It is now 2023 and we are going into the next budget, for 2024. The policy states that the State pension should be indexed at 34% of average earnings and be tied to the consumer price index and average earnings,” Collins said.

The Independent TD said that non-government organisations (NGOs), such as AgeAction and Threshold, called to increase welfare payments by €20 before the budget last year to “allow people to stand still” during the cost-of-living crisis.

The increase of €12 per week, rather than €20, was labelled a “political choice to cut the living standards of older people” by AgeAction.

Varadkar said: “[Collins] did not acknowledge that pensioner poverty is lower than poverty among working age people. Pensioners or older people are less likely to experience poverty than adults of working age. It is important to acknowledge that.”

The 2019 roadmap says that there have been previous government that correctly diagnosed the challenges that the Department of Social Protection faced at the beginning of the plan.

The plan, signed by Varadkar, current Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform Paschal Donohoe and previous Minister for Employment Affairs & Social Protection Regina Doherty says it “builds on those reports, identifies the specific actions we will take and sets out a timetable for implementation”.

“When implemented it will eliminate anomalies in the State pension system and ensure its sustainability. It will foster and support a new culture of retirement saving to improve outcomes for all,” it said.

The Taoiseach said the government would “certainly include everything in any benchmarking exercise” as it has previously increased the weekly pension rate, expanded the fuel allowance to more pensioners as well as given credit for energy bills and other one-off payments to every household.

Last week, Tánaiste Micheál Martin said to RTÉ’s Today that there would not be any “mini-budget” between now and October, adding that the government “can’t do a budget every month”.