Today, the Parliamentary Social Committee suspended discussion of the upcoming pension reform indefinitely. In what form it will be sent to the lower house for a final vote, it will probably decide at the end of October. He decided on the suspension after complaints and criticism from opposition MPs from ANO and SPD, who mainly wanted to debate Friday’s proposal by coalition legislators from ODS and TOP 09 to limit the possibility of earlier pensions for demanding professions. Not even part of the coalition of four or the opposition Pirates agree with this.
“There is no unequivocal agreement on when the committee will meet. We have agreed to adjourn. With a high probability, I will convene the meeting on October 30 in the morning at 7:15,” said committee chairman Vít Kaňkovský (KDU-ČSL).
The interruption was preceded by an emotional debate on the procedure for discussing the pension reform and, above all, on the additional proposal submitted by the ODS and TOP 09 deputies on Friday. They proposed limiting the number of people with risky jobs who could retire early. Members of the committee from the opposition complained about the impossibility of discussing this amendment. The deputy chairwoman of the committee, Lucie Šafránková (SPD), proposed an adjournment until November 6, but failed.
“We all realize that a pension reform is necessary. But I don’t know if the coalition realizes that if they force something through, it will be canceled next year. If it is worth doing such a pension reform that does not have support across the spectrum,” she said Saffron.
According to the deputy chairperson of the committee, Jana Pastuchová (ANO), the proposal to limit the earlier pension of demanding professions is “stitched on the knees” and even the coalition of four does not agree on it. “If it came back to us and the discussion was extended by a month or two, nothing would happen at all,” said Pastuchová. She pointed out that at first the Ministry of Labor prepared the original proposal for months and negotiated the settings, only for the coalition legislators to change it at the last minute. “If we win the elections, we will simply change it,” said the deputy chairwoman of the ANO committee.
Kaňkovský said that no one from the opposition had approached him with a request for a postponement since Friday, and this morning the deputies approved the discussion of the reform in the agenda. He denied that the procedure was unfair. He called a break to calm his emotions. After her, the committee voted to adjourn. 14 of the 18 members of parliament present were in favor.
According to the government reform, workers in the most risky fourth category and parts of the third category, who have physical stress, vibration, cold and heat at work, could be entitled to earlier pensions. The employer would pay five percentage points higher levies for them. The additional proposal deletes the third category. The number of people who could retire earlier without reducing the amount would thus decrease from 120,000 to 12,000.
“If this proposal is accepted, we cannot vote for the Pirates for the entire reform,” said Deputy Speaker of the Chamber Olga Richterová (Pirates).
The STAN movement also has reservations. His MP Viktor Vojtko told ČTK that the restriction is logical due to the slowdown in the growth of the retirement age, but the solution is not to eliminate an entire group of workers. STAN proposes mandatory savings into the third pillar. Even Pavla Pivoňka Vaňková (STAN) does not support the restriction, said ČTK. Not even the People’s Committee head would vote for them. “Even I, as a doctor, not as a politician, do not agree with the narrowing of demanding professions. In fact, the physical and mental demands in some professions are enormous. With the narrowing, we, like the state, will have to take care of people, and they will then fall into disability pensions. The original proposal was balanced,” said Kaňkovský.
Source: www.tyden.cz
