asked the Minister for Social Welfare when it is proposed to introduce legislation on the State pension scheme.

The Programme for Government, 1981-86, contains an undertaking that the consultations with interested parties about a national income-related pension plan as envisaged in the 1976 Green Paper will be brought to a conclusion and appropriate legislation introduced in the course of the Government's term of office. In the time since I took office as Minister for Social Welfare I have been examining the various views put forward in response to the 1976 Green Paper and I hope to finalise my own proposals in this area in the near future.