Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

-----with subsequent financial failure. Nobody who is a policyholder and who pays for insurance wants to see any insurance company failing, because in this country when that happens, and under the EU model, we, the policyholders and people who pay for insurance in Ireland generally, will end up paying for it.

There is merit in what the Deputy has said. The Government has begun a very intense and detailed dialogue with the insurance industry on these matters. As the Deputy said, the Minister for Finance has written to the insurance industry. The protection of the broader interests of policyholders by the provision of insurance in Ireland is critical. Based on the conversations we have had to date, there are certain things we can do. For instance, we can look to address the surge in claims and the level of claims for whiplash because they are driving up prices for every motorist and every family which has a car. To suggest, rather disingenuously and dishonestly, that we should do this overnight simply for the purposes of electioneering-----

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