Labhrás Ó Murchú (Fianna Fail)

I urge the Leader to provide time for a debate on insurance, which impacts on every aspect of life. There are people who have no moral constraints when it comes to making claims, their perception being that there is a bottomless purse and that this money comes from an anonymous source. Companies have had to put out advertisements reminding people that at the end of the day that money comes from the pocket of every individual paying for insurance. The reverse of this is the service providers. Reference was made today to a possible increase in health insurance premiums. There have been many such increases over several years.

We must remind those providers that there is not a bottomless purse and that premiums do not come from an anonymous source. It would be worthwhile for those providing a service in the health area to examine their charges. They must realise that the people who will eventually be paying for that service through insurance are ordinary people on whom there are already exceptional pressures. These increases of 10%, 15% or 20% are not met out of the air.

We must examine extravagant charges. I am not taking from the service provider. There is no question that the service provided is excellent. Those of us who have had to avail of it were delighted to have insurance cover. However, many people can no longer afford it. These people are to be denied the basic service and attention which every citizen should have. We should not automatically agree to further increases in premiums. We must at this stage take a step back and look at how we can justify the type of charges currently in place.