asked the Minister for Social Welfare if he has any plans to regularise the process of transferring pension rights acquired by an employee from one pension fund to another; and will he make a statement on the matter.

There is no provision in the legislation administered by my Department for regulating the transfer of pension rights acquired by employees from one pension fund to another. The absence of statutory provisions for such transfers in the private sector so as to ensure that pension rights are protected in all circumstances was one of the major shortcomings of the present system identified in the recently published Green paper on a national incomerelated pension scheme. I would expect that adequate provision to protect acquired pension rights will be an essential element of whatever new pensions system is finally adopted.