James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I am taking two minutes and sharing with a number of colleagues. I welcome the Flood Insurance Bill and thank my colleague, Deputy Michael McGrath, for bringing it forward. The packed Gallery is testament to the importance of the Bill and the area of insurance, with people coming from the north, south, east and west of the country. The way people have been treated in the area of insurance is testament to the practice of insurance companies across the board, and we have seen with regard to motor insurance how the most vulnerable people in society are being targeted. The insurance companies must be tackled over their cherry-picking.

This is a particularly important issue in my county of Wexford. Flooding on the River Slaney is an increasingly regular occurrence. In my home town we have seen the devastation wreaked on families, home owners and family businesses when the town floods. Last year, the President kindly visited to highlight the difficulties in the county and in Enniscorthy town in particular. When faced with the devastation caused by flooding, these families must then deal with the emotional and physical wreckage of that but they must also face the financial ruin wreaked because of the inability to either get insurance or get it at a reasonable price.

A €40 million flood defence programme is on course for Enniscorthy, which is very welcome. However, under the law as it currently stands, even when that is built and certified by the OPW, the people of Enniscorthy, as is the experience of people across Ireland, will not be able to get insurance cover. Insurance companies will continue to be able to discriminate against these Wexford families despite the investment from the taxpayer. That is unacceptable and it places families and businesses under unnecessary stress and financial pressure. I welcome the Bill as a step towards resolving the discrimination people are suffering.

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