Three-quarters of defined benefit schemes were still in deficit at the end of 2009, the Pensions Board said today.
Speaking at the launch of its annual report in Dublin, the board’s chief executive Brendan Kennedy said that while pension funds had performed strongly last year, this had not offset the “very significant investment” losses incurred in 2007 and 2008.
Mr Kennedy added that although investment returns for 2009 had provided some relief for pension scheme members, there are concerns about how these returns were achieved.
Pensions Board data shows that the level of investment risk being taken is still very high, he said.
‘The lessons of the past are clearly still not being applied today; investment strategies must focus on the risk as well as the return,” said Mr Kennedy.
According to the board’s annual report, there were 853,397 members in 84,246 occupational pension schemes at the end of 2009.
During the year, there were 169 suspected cases of deduction and non-remittance of pension contributions by employers in the construction sector were reported to the board.
Pensions Board chairman Tiarnan O'Mahoney said the agency took misappropriation of employees’ monies seriously and would continue to pursue these cases “as a matter of priority".
“I have previously highlighted the board’s grave concerns about instances of deduction, but non-remittance, of employee pension contributions under the Construction Workers Pension Scheme,” he added.
“The board regards this misappropriation of employees’ monies most seriously and we continue to pursue these cases as a matter of priority with a focus on restoring the monies to the scheme.”
Mr O’Mahoney also welcomed the Government’s publication of the National Pensions Framework in March and claimed it represented a significant milestone in pensions policy.
