The Parliamentary Committee on Finance is grappling with the issue of abolishing multiple pensions for state officials, as highlighted in today’s meeting.
The Law Office’s position that MPs cannot touch pension rights acquired by officials until 2012, when the law on pension rights for public servants was enacted, has raised eyebrows.
The committee’s discussion focused on a bill proposed by MPs Demetris Demetriou, Irene Charalambidou, Alexandra Attalides, and Stavros Papadouris, which incorporates a recommendation by the Audit Office.
The bill aims to suspend the pension of a public or broader public sector employee who assumes an office, position, or post in the Republic or the European Union after January 1, 2012.
It also proposes offsetting the pension with any other similar pension earned from any other office, position, or post, ensuring that the maximum pension a state official can receive is two-thirds of the highest pensionable earnings.
The proposed legislative provisions protect the right to a vested pension for service in a position in the broader public sector and/or any other office, position, or post that the beneficiary held before the proposed law was enacted, which will be paid in addition.
It is noted that similar regulations are already in place under the Public Servants and Employees of the Wider Public Sector, including Local Authorities (General Application) Law [Article 216(1) of 2012].
The Auditor General, Odysseas Michaelides, emphasised the need to implement the 2012 legislation, which applies to public servants. He explained that if a public servant leaves the public sector to assume a state office, they will receive the pension they had acquired until 2012, and the remaining amount when they retire.
“We are not touching the vested pension; you will receive the pension you acquired until December 31, 2012, and the rest when you retire,” he clarified.
The committee’s chair, Christiana Erotokritou, a DIKO MP, stated that the MPs’ intention is to include existing state officials in the proposed restrictive regulation.
She suggested examining the scenarios for the 30 state official positions one by one, ensuring that the regulations found will apply to both current and future officials.
“If we carefully examine all the scenarios, we can reach a conclusion that will give us some confidence that the proposed bills are sound,” she added.
Due to the issue’s complexity, an informal committee meeting will be held next Thursday to discuss the proposed bills and find a solution that applies to all state officials.
Opposition parties criticised the Government for not yet submitting the relevant bills, while the Ministry of Finance representative stated that the bills are still being prepared.
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