Jonathan O'Brien (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I will be brief in my contribution because we will also be supporting the legislation and look forward to its speedy passage through the Dáil.

As Deputy Jim O'Callaghan outlined, this legislation stemmed from the recommendations of a working group on medical and periodic payments in 2010, under the leadership of Mr. Justice John Quirke who was then in the High Court. He had been asked to examine the system of claims for damages arising from alleged medical malpractice and to identify shortcomings in the system. The group concluded that the system was inadequate and inappropriate and that it should be replaced by periodic payments. We welcome this recommendation. I know that in my constituency in Cork we had a situation where one family had to go to court on three separate occasions to try to secure a settlement. That was a very difficult process for them, They spoke about it in public, but I will not name them here.

It was a much publicised case in national media at the time. Their son had a brain operation and, as a result of that, was left with a catastrophic injuries. The family found itself in a very difficult position in which it ended up having to make numerous High Court appearances on the matter. One of the other reasons that the periodic payments should be looked at, which was touched on by the working group, was that in cases in which somebody who is receiving this compensation exceeds the life expectancy, there can then be additional costs in care for that individual. It should be up to the court to periodically review that. It is very unlikely in the types of scenarios we are talking about that one would see an improvement in a person's condition, but one could very easily see a worsening of that condition. That may be reflected in the periodic payments. It is something that we will be supporting.

We have one concern in the proposed new section 51L in the 1961 Act, which deals with the indexation of payments and would allow for the adjustment of the PPO in line with the cost of living. We would like to discuss that further on Committee Stage. Not only should it relate to the cost of living, but one of the biggest costs in terms of care is the cost of labour. That is something that we could discuss further on Committee Stage. We will support the legislation and want to facilitate its speedy passage through the Chamber.

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