Ciarán Cuffe (Dún Laoghaire, Green Party)

It is not often that there is broad agreement on all sides of the House regarding the merits of draft legislation. However, this is a good example of the generally impressive publications brought forward by the Law Reform Commission. I am pleased Fine Gael took the opportunity to replicate the draft Bill provided by the commission as an appendix to its report. I compliment Deputy Timmins on bringing forward the legislation because these types of reports tend to gather dust. Legislation in this area will allow people to breathe more easily, from members of football teams to volunteers in various organisations.

The Fine Gael proposal seeks to implement the recommendations in the Law Reform Commission's report on the civil liability of good samaritans, which was published last year. The Bill purports to protect from liability those who go to the assistance of others who may be ill or injured as a result of an accident or other emergency. The intention is to ensure that those who intervene to give help to others and who offer this assistance in good faith cannot then be penalised or held liable as a result of their intervention provided they are not grossly negligent. The Bill also provides for the liability of voluntary organisations and undertakings for the ordinary negligence of their members. All of that is welcome.

The report of the Law Reform Commission was undertaken in response to a request in January 2006 by the Attorney General to make such recommendations as the commission considered appropriate for reform of the law on civil liability in this area. The Attorney General's request arose against the background of an earlier Private Members' proposal, the Good Samaritan Bill 2005. That Bill was defeated on the basis that there was a dearth of Irish law on good samaritans and that any proposal to legislate in this area would require careful consideration. The lesson in all of this is that while the wheels of the law may move slowly, they have been speeded up in this case as evidenced by the commitment by the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform to bring forward the legislation as soon as possible.

The Chief Whip, Deputy Pat Carey, has indicated that the civil law (miscellaneous provisions) Bill, which will make provision for the civil liability of good samaritans and volunteers, will be published in the current session and enacted within a shorter than usual timeframe. I understand drafting is at an advanced stage. This Bill will implement the Law Reform Commission's recommendations and provide more adequately for the civil liability of good samaritans and volunteers than what is envisaged in the Private Members' Bill. That is one of the lessons of being in government. I recall from my five years in opposition that one might draft a Bill which made an abundance of sense. However, one is essentially producing only the heads of a Bill, without the nuts and bolts of the detail. On this side of the fence one realises the importance of getting the detail right and working closely with the Attorney General and with Departments to make sure every i is dotted and t crossed. That is often the reason legislation can take a long time to come on board.

The Government Bill will provide the requisite statutory framework and will ensure there is no general duty on any category of persons to attempt to rescue or assist an at risk or injured person. There will be a statutory definition of good samaritans and volunteers as those who act voluntarily and without expectation of payment or other reward in providing assistance, advice or care in emergency situations or for the benefit of the community. In a sense, this pertains to the antithesis to what Robert Putnam described as bowling alone. It is about the essence of community, about people helping one another and about meitheal. It is about something the Irish always have been good at but it will enshrine this in law. It is counter-intuitive to tell someone not to go near a person who is in difficulty but to hold back and wait for the gardaí or the ambulance to arrive. This goes against our very nature and against the grain of what being Irish is all about and this Bill will make it easier for us to go to the assistance of others.

Moreover, it will provide a standard of care for good samaritans and volunteers, which only imposes liabilities in circumstances of gross negligence, the test for which will be set out in the legislation. It will provide a standard of care for volunteer organisations or undertakings which impose liability in circumstances of ordinary negligence. In addition, it will ensure that account should be taken of the benefits which have accrued to society because of a voluntary organisation's work when determining whether it is just and reasonable to impose liability. One hears much talk around this House on encouraging volunteerism and encouraging people to help others. The Bill proposed by Fine Gael and, more importantly, the Bill the Government is in the process of bringing forward, will address these issues adequately. It will constitute a good step forward for a common law society like Ireland and for the people. The law often has intervened and in a funny old way and this will move us towards the European model, in which one does reach out to others and in which there is an expectation that people can and should help out.

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