EFRP response to the Commission´s Green Paper on Pensions
15 November 2010
EFRP Members believe that it is not the task of the EU to define a target level for what are considered adequate retirement benefits. Member States must themselves define what they consider as an adequate – or socially desirable - level of retirement income.
EFRP welcomes the increased EU-level policy attention to the pension challenge across the Member States. We strongly support the holistic approach taken by the European Commission as pensions relate to social policy, labour markets as well as financial markets.
EFRP is pleased that the Green Paper acknowledges that there is no “ideal” one size- fits-all design to pension systems. The huge diversity of European pension systems that exists today is due to historical choices in social and economic policy.
EFRP agrees with the Commission that Europe faces the enormous challenge of providing its citizens with adequate and sustainable retirement incomes. Population ageing risks making pay-as-you-go State pension systems unsustainable. The deterioration of public finances due to the economic and financial crisis places additional pressure on State pension benefits.
Therefore, EFRP believes there is a compelling need to promote multi-pillar pension systems with a strong reliance on work-related pensions. Today, 60% of European citizens still do not have access to such a work-related pension scheme, despite the fact that they are well equipped to promote adequate and efficient saving for retirement. We believe addressing this problem must be a priority for the Commission. Indeed, the issue is so pressing that it should take priority over many of the issues covered in the Green Paper.
Deficit and debt reductions should not impinge on funded pension savings in Member States. We are alarmed that some Member States – including some in the CEE region – have scaled back the scope and pace of their pension reform, or are considering doing so, as a reaction to managing deficit and debt reduction. We believe this is both short-sighted and undesirable. In order to deliver, all pension systems need stability and long-term planning.
© EFRP - European Federation for Retirement Provision
