Mr. Ciarán Breen:

We in the State Claims Agency are on record that it is a considerable frustration to us that we do not have the periodic payment order legislation. At the moment, we are obliged simply to get an order of the court made for an interim payment for a defined period with a returnable date to court for the renewal of that order for another period. In a PPO legislative environment, we would simply have the making of a periodic payment order and, each year thereafter on an annual basis on a defined date, we would send the relevant cheque to the injured party's carers and family who would then have the exact amount for the care and aids and appliances for that year.