Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

From a Fianna Fáil perspective, there is no issue with political support being provided. If the Government needs time in the Seanad, it should ask us. I will talk to our colleagues about providing our time in the Seanad to deal with the Judicial Council Bill.

It is two years since the first report was issued but, on the question of a fraud unit within the Garda, the Minister of State is saying that it is being considered. It was essentially recommended two years ago, yet there is no firm update as to whether it will happen. People want to know if it will happen and, if so, when. We lost a great deal of time in the argument about who would fund it, yet we still do not know whether it will happen.

The Minister of State is blaming the issue of awards completely. It forms part of the story, but I do not accept that a play centre's insurance bill increasing from €3,500 in 2016 to €18,500 in 2019 is completely down to awards. The data do not bear that out. If, however, the Minister of State attributes the main reason for premiums increasing to awards, where are we in terms of dealing with them?

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