Willie O'Dea (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 67, 121 and 126 together.

The Army Pensions Acts provide for the grant of pensions and gratuities to former members of the Permanent Defence Force in respect of permanent disablement due to a wound or injury attributable to military service, whether at home or abroad, or due to disease attributable to or aggravated by overseas service with the United Nations. These pensions are commonly known as disability pensions but, under the Acts, those granted in wound or injury cases are, in fact, wound pensions.

Section 13(2) of the Army Pensions Act 1923, as amended, provides that "Any compensation which may be received from or on behalf of the person alleged to be responsible for the act which caused the wounding . . . may be taken into consideration in fixing the amount of any pension, allowance or gratuity which might be awarded under this Act to or in respect of such officer or soldier and if such compensation is received after the award of any such pension or allowance the Minister may review the award and, having regard to the amount of such compensation, either terminate or reduce the amount thereof". The underlying objective of section 13(2) is to prevent double compensation in respect of the same disablement. Compensation of the kind in question would usually result from a civil action for damages against the Department of Defence, but compensation received from any other source is not excluded.

From 1 January 2000 to 30 April 2006, 297 applications for pensions under the Army Pensions Acts were made. Of these, 188 were in respect of wound and injury only, 46 were in respect of wound, injury and disease, and 63 were in respect of disease only. Of the 297 applications, 191 have been found eligible for a pension or gratuity, 83 have been unsuccessful and final decisions have not yet been made in the remaining 23 cases. Of those found eligible, 59 wound pension and gratuity cases have been or are being reviewed under section 13(2) of the 1923 Act. A full or partial reduction of benefit has been applied in 48 of these cases while final decisions have yet to be made in nine cases. Section 13(2) does not apply in cases related solely to disablement due to disease attributable to or aggravated by overseas service with the United Nations.

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