Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

They are. The Government has a fair lot of them over there. Where are they tonight? They are the national liabilities. Almost one in ten saw their premiums rise by more than 50% year-on year. Who is telling the truth here? I suggest that it is the hard-pressed motorist who has to face these challenges day in day out. The same is true of the hard-pressed business man, shopkeeper and sole trader. We are trying to encourage people to come back into the country but what do we do with them then? If they are more than two years abroad the Government had better pay their insurance because when they come back they are treated like criminals. A foreign national can come from any country and they can get insurance here no matter where they were driving or what kind of phony insurance they had. I do not say they should not come. I welcome them to our shores. If someone leaves this country because they had to emigrate with their family they are penalised when they come back. They must do a theory test once again. What an insult. It is a joke. The Government has had 19 months and it has done nothing.

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