Michael D'Arcy (Wexford, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I will not be commenting on the case that Deputy Mattie McGrath mentioned. I have never spoken about an individual case. I have been doing this job for two years and I do not intend to speak about an individual case before it gets to court, when it is in court or afterwards.

I love how Deputy Mattie McGrath is almost always entirely wrong. He said there is an unwillingness to deal with this issue. I have never seen as much desire to deal with the issue of insurance as there is now. However, this is not a simple matter. The Deputy asked me why I do not change the book of quantum. I do not have the authority to do that and nor does anyone in this House. We do not have the authority to act in that way due to the separation of powers. It is a matter for the Judiciary rather than Deputies in this House.

A number of years ago, the cost of insurance working group produced reports on employer liability and public liability insurance. The second report was launched by the former President of the High Court, Mr. Justice Nicholas Kearns, and it proposed the establishment of a judicial council. This council would include a committee made up of members of the Judiciary which would re-examine the guidelines, in effect creating a new book of quantum. That is the work we are doing. The legislation is before the other House. Report Stage will take place in the Seanad, I hope, within a couple of weeks. The objective is that the legislation would pass through the Upper House and this House before the end of the summer session. I appeal for the help of everyone to get this legislation through. If we get it through before the end of this session, I will request an early signature motion by the President so that the judicial council can be established. The members of the Judiciary can then do the work with which they have been tasked by the Personal Injury Commission, namely, to review the guidelines. That is a crucial piece of work. If we do our work in a quick and efficient manner, I can see no reason members of the Judiciary cannot do the same. I have put in place a schedule for the completion of this work by the end of this year, which is a reasonable timeframe. It would ensure that the businesses of this country which have been caught by awards or exaggerated claims or small claims are able to reduce their premiums. The crucial aspect of this is to ensure that the insurance companies do not get the opportunity to pocket the awards. I do not want circumstances to arise in which the awards come down and the premiums do not. That is not what I am about, and I believe nobody in these Houses is in favour of such a move. We must ensure that businesses are allowed to trade in an efficient manner. They employ people and with employment comes the opportunity to access everything that is required for the dignity of people, allowing them to advance in society.

For every one fraudulent claim, there are hundreds of exaggerated claims where people who have been affected through no fault of their own jack up the amounts they are seeking. I believe that is a fact. For every one exaggerated claim, there are hundreds of claims by people who want the correct amount. However, awards here, according to the Personal Injuries Commission report, are four or five times higher than in England and Wales. We must also be careful around this issue. Every business person pays insurance so that if someone is affected by an accident caused in part by negligence, those people will be paid efficiently and well.

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