Further Reading
By Martin Banks - 18th November 2010
I am appealing to MEPs to have a rethink on this
Vicky Ford
British MEP Vicky Ford has called on the EU to review its pension provision for the thousands of civil servants employed in its institutions.
Speaking at an event co-organised by the Parliament Magazine and Aviva on tackling Europe's pensions gap, she said it was important the EU "leads by example".
The generous pension entitlement to EU staff has come under close scrutiny of late, particularly as some member states, such as France, are introducing plans to increase the retirement age for workers.
French president Nicolas Sarkozy's plans raise the retirement age from 65 to 67 has sparked public anger while, in Germany, the retirement age will gradually increase to 67 from 2012.
The ECR deputy, who is also Conservative spokesman on economic affairs, has sought to include a review of current pension provision in the 2011 EU budget.
"The pensions issue is incredibly sensitive and we need to make sure that we are leading by example," she said.
"The last review was back in 2004 when, economically, things were very different. We need another review to see if current provision is in line with market practice."
Speaking at the same event, Fritz von Nordheim, from the commission's employment and social affairs DG, said that while the present pensionable age for commission staff was 63 "normally you are obliged to retire at 65."
He said, "I understand the inclination of people to ask those who are prescriptive whether they take their own medicine and to ask them to set a good example."
The event heard that ageing populations and increasing demographic challenges had forced member states to review how best to address pension provision.
Details were published of a study by insurance company Aviva, co-organiser of the event, which shows that the difference is "huge" between the level of pension provision people need for an adequate standard of living and the actual pension they are likely to receive.
It recommends issuing of regular pension statements to all citizens, saying this would "encourage consumers to consider the state pension as only part of a mixed strategy for providing for their future."
Andrea Moneta, CEO of Aviva Europe, said the study also calls for the creation of a "European quality standard for pensions" which would allow providers to "demonstrate the quality of their products."
He said, "There is a huge pensions gap and action is urgently needed to address this problem."
His comments were echoed by Anne-Sophie Parent, director of AGE Platform Europe, who said she was particularly concerned about the "gender gap" in pensions between men and women.
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