Industrial Action Debate

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Department: Cabinet Office

Industrial Action

David Ruffley Excerpts
Wednesday 30th November 2011

(12 years, 11 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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John Bercow Portrait Mr Speaker
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Order. Many Members are seeking to catch my eye. There is another statement to follow, and I remind the House that we have an Opposition day debate too. There is therefore a premium on brevity, the exemplar of which will be Mr David Ruffley.

David Ruffley Portrait Mr David Ruffley (Bury St Edmunds) (Con)
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Three out of four of my constituents work in the private sector for middling incomes, and they tell me that they would have to put one third of their earnings into their pension to get the benefits that people on strike today enjoy on retirement. Does the Minister agree that the public sector pensions settlement is not only incredibly affordable but incredibly fair?

Lord Maude of Horsham Portrait Mr Maude
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I think it is fair to the general taxpayer, who has carried all the additional cost of public sector pensions over the past 10 years, and to public sector workers and staff, who are dedicated, hard working and perform essential work. We want pension schemes to be available, without their having to be revisited every few years, because this Government are determined to get this right for the long term.