MPs preserve their own luxury pensions
Parliament votes in favour of keeping own privileged pension scheme In the middle of negotiating an abolition of the early retirement scheme for the nation, a sweeping majority in parliament has voted in favour of maintaining its own special pension...
In the middle of negotiating an abolition of the early retirement scheme for the nation, a sweeping majority in parliament has voted in favour of maintaining its own special pension scheme for MPs.
An overwhelming majority of MPs yesterday voted against a Red-Green Alliance proposal to put politicians’ pensions on the same footing as the rest of the population.
This means that MPs will still be able to retire at 60, even after just one year in parliament, while ministers can retire with a generous pension at the age of 62.
Only the Red-Green Alliance, Liberal Alliance and independent MP Christian H. Hansen voted in favour of the proposal.
“A majority in parliament is apparently proposing an abolition of the early retirement scheme and an increase in the pension age, while at the same time they are defending their own privileges,” Per Clausen, of the Red-Green Alliance, told Newspaq news agency.
“That’s about as hypocritical and despicable as it can get.” A similar view comes from trade union FOA, whose 200,000 members in the healthcare industry who heavily support the early retirement pension scheme that the government is trying to phase out.
“The behaviour of the politicians stinks of greed and trade union careerism,” said FOA chairman Dennis Kristensen. “It’s surreal. There is no other explanation than greed – especially now that we’re in the middle of negotiating that Danes should stay on the job market for longer thereshould be some concordance with the politicians’ own conditions.”
See related stories
State aims to cut deficit by 2020
Women’s pensions lag 300,000 kroner behind men’s, study shows