The countries which spend the highest proportion of public money on pensions are Italy (32%), Greece (28%) and Portugal (26.4%).
The figures, from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation & Development, show that the average proportion in OECD countries is 18%.
The proportion is so high in southern countries partly as a result of the economic meltdown they have endured since the financial crisis during which other state spending was slashed, according to the OECD.
But high spending on pensions was not limited to the poorer southern European nations. Austria, Poland, France, Japan, Germany and Spain were all well above the 18% average.
The UK, on the other hand, was found to spend less than 12% of its total government budget on state pensions.
Iceland spent the lowest proportion of its government funds on pensions, at 4.5%.
The data is from 2011 but was published only this month in a report which said that despite having substantially different pension systems, countries were having to reform their pensions because of the impact of the financial crisis and the need to reduce government debt.
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Which tell us that a substantial proportion of the working population have never been in the Portuguese social security system. Although a number thought they were as they had been making the relevant payments but were defrauded.
Portugal's pensioners are having a 13% cut, dropping many to less than 500 euros a month. Probably less than what a UK public sector final salary scheme would be paying in a week.
This craziness of the Portuguese in not comparing like with like !!! As others have commented - yet more examples of their 40 year old PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder) !
It may also mean that Greece, Italy and Portugal will have trouble cutting expenditure without also cutting pension benefits. In a currently funded system, which is in recession, pensioners are right to fear for their future pension income.
Perhaps a 'real' Portuguese can comment to us here on what pension arrangement Salazar had in place for all citizens ? Or was universal pension arrangements an entirely new concept 28 years ago?
We keep hearing that - before the crisis - up to 60% of the Portuguese labour force were never on the radar for anything. Ghost workers. Paid cash and hired when needed. Or just subsistence farmers or working in the family cafe.
So it is only in the last 30 years that systems for paying into pensions have been established. Yet, we then often hear of unscrupulous Portuguese business owners taking pension payments from workers and not registering it. So no pension possible ?
Seeing many factories closing on TV with the workers outside complaining they have not been paid anything for x months.
Apparently half of the current unemployed get no support from the state - presumably because they paid nothing in.
The point being - with all these 'non-payers in' - the system is skewed when they later claim for pensions in their hundreds of thousands.
Then add to that the commissions on debt, and high debt repayment rates which eats at tax revenues.
And the stats may be in fact be totally different if above is also taken into account.