Marc MacSharry (Sligo-Leitrim, Fianna Fail)
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61. To ask the Minister for Finance if he will make contact with the insurance industry to request that annual premium renewals are reduced for sports clubs that are being hit by large premiums. [17165/21]

Pádraig O'Sullivan (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail)
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76. To ask the Minister for Finance the steps he is taking to tackle the cost of rising insurance premia which are currently crippling businesses; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17073/21]

Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent)
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Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire. Rachaimid ar aghaidh anois le Ceist Uimh. 61 In the name of Deputy MacSharry and the linked Question No. 76 in the name of Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan. I call Deputy MacSharry to speak now.

Marc MacSharry (Sligo-Leitrim, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Leas-Cheann Comhairle and the Minister of State, Deputy Fleming, again and ask him if we will make contact with the insurance industry chiefs and request that the annual premium renewals are reduced for sports clubs that are being hit by very large premiums.

Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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As I indicated earlier, I am meeting with the chief executives of each of the major insurance companies in Ireland over the next fortnight and I want to give an assurance to the Deputy that I will specifically put that item on the agenda for those insurance companies that deal with sports clubs, and not with just these clubs but with other voluntary sector organisations, together with groups and people in the community sector who also have difficulty in getting insurance. I will be asking those who are involved in the industry at that meeting to re-examine the premiums being charged for the coming year in view of the fact that many of the sports clubs and voluntary sector organisations were closed for most of last year and are currently under restrictions, which will continue for some time. There will be much reduced activity, risk of injury and of claims as a result.

I will also be asking those companies that are not directly involved in this area, which for one reason or another either pulled back from it or were never involved in the sports insurance area, to have a look at the industry now, especially since the judicial guidelines have been published and enacted in law.

Two key issues were mentioned regarding the provision of insurance in Ireland in all of my engagements with the insurance companies last autumn. One was the level of awards and the associated legal costs. The second was the lack of certainty where they could not plan or make reasonable financial projections as to the cost of claims over a reasonable period of time. The Judicial Council guidelines have achieved a very substantial reduction in personal injury claims which are, on average, in the region of 50%. In some cases it will be much higher than 50% but in other cases it will obviously be lower. There are very substantial reductions in the awards planned under the new judicial guidelines in a number of the main areas of claims we are talking about, small injuries that cure within a short period of time and which leave no lasting effect on the individual, compared with the book of quantum that PIAB uses at the moment.

In addition, the issue of certainty is very much back on the table. From our point of view, up to now we were in a weak position because nobody in Ireland could reasonably predict what would come out of a court case. Now that the judges have collectively made this decision and have issued very strict guidelines, to ensure that the judges themselves follow the guidelines they have agreed to, these will apply bar in very exceptional circumstances where a case must be stated. This level of certainly will help us to bring other insurance companies back into the business of providing cover in this sector.

One further point to be made is that there are other elements involved because incidents happen in sports fields, clubs and sporting activities where people can suffer significant injuries. We hope that all recover within a very short period of time. We were not able to predict how much some of the awards would cost up until now. That is now happening and I have met some sports clubs over the past year that have given me examples of some very serious awards against their club and their insurance company which resulted in them not being able to get insurance cover on a subsequent occasion. I am confident in saying that those days are behind us and insurance will be available for all of these groups now. We want to increase competition because we cannot mandate precisely the price ourselves. It is not within our gift and is a commercial decision but I believe that we will get a positive response from the chief executive of these companies when we meet over the next two weeks.

Marc MacSharry (Sligo-Leitrim, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister of State for that reply. I am aware of his response to the State getting involved in financial services and he mentioned Irish Public Bodies, IPB Insurance. Is it possible, perhaps, when it comes to community initiatives such as sports clubs, not-for-profit organisations, local festivals and such events, playgrounds and so on, that IPB Insurance could be considered as the insurer for such a situation?

As to a State bank, the Minister of State mentioned that we had a high shareholding in so many financial institutions, and I agree with that assessment. We are probably, however, one of the most passive shareholders in the world. I would be taking a very strong view, given the strength and size of our shareholding, on the policies that are being pursued by that financial institution, which we are not prepared to take on. That is why I would like to see a State bank. I thank the Leas-Cheann Comhairle.

Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent)
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I call Deputy O'Sullivan now.

Pádraig O'Sullivan (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail)
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Gabhaim buíochas leis an Leas-Cheann Comhairle. I welcome the Government's Action Plan for Insurance Reform which was launched in December. I note the progress made to date and the update the Government provided last week. Actions delivered upon include the adoption of new personal injuries guidelines, a public consultation on enhancing the role of the Personal Injuries Assessment Board, new regulations on solicitors' advertising, and a response to the Central Bank report on dual pricing.

Many small businesses have been kept afloat with the assistance of Government supports over the past year and I want to acknowledge the great amount of work done by the Minister of State, his Department, and the Minister, Deputy McGrath, in that regard. If businesses are to recover post Covid-19, however, we must ensure that the reform of the insurance sector happens as quickly as possible. Can the Minister of State give a commitment that the issue of insurance reform will be addressed this year?

Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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I want to thank both Deputies for their contributions and I also appreciate the summary provided of the activities we have carried out in the insurance sector. I have concentrated on the judicial guidelines but our priorities for the next three months include the reform of the duty of care legislation, which is very important for all businesses, especially for sporting, voluntary and community organisations where accidents can happen.

We are strengthening the law on perjury; enhancing the enforcement powers of the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission; expanding the National Claims Information Database operated by the Central Bank; and, for the first time ever, we will be bringing out a report on employer public liability insurance. That report will be the first ever such report we will have had available to us and will cover all of the issues referred to here by the Deputy.

Finally in my reference to IPB Insurance, this is a mutual insurance company generally managed by the County and City Management Association and responsible to it. I suggest the Deputies make contact with their relevant local authority manager to make contact, in turn, with the County and City Management Association to see if it can assist in insurance for festivals and playgrounds.

Marc MacSharry (Sligo-Leitrim, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister of State very much for his words but to conclude, there are many reasons not to do something. Real leadership is having the courage to do things. I would like to see the State ultimately entering the financial services world. I do not trust any of the banks, whether we are shareholders in them or not, and I am a former employee of one of them. I do not trust any of our insurance companies either because, as I said here some weeks ago, their business is cold profitability being delivered through dividends for their shareholders. We work for the people and not for the financial services industry. In that regard, we should be prepared to look at the establishment of a State bank and a State insurance company and the provision of a broad range of financial services to our people. We can then have an element of control of consumer price rather than one that is based exclusively on cold profitability. I ask both Ministers to please consider this point.

Pádraig O'Sullivan (Cork North Central, Fianna Fail)
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Exaggerated and misleading insurance claims have for far too long driven up costs and impacted competitiveness. It was the case in previous years that businesses had to eat into their everyday cash flow in order to pay off the high cost of insurance. This will not be an option for most businesses post Covid-19 as many of them are financially vulnerable. In the past, areas such as hospitality were greatly impacted by increases in premiums. Hospitality is one of those most vulnerable sectors at the moment due to the public health emergency. I am cognisant that as businesses reopen they are going to be in an exceptionally vulnerable financial position. Can the Minister of State ensure we get this right and implement the reforms as quickly as possible?

I ask that the Leas-Cheann Comhairle might indulge me for a moment longer.

Today, along with 20 other Senators and Deputies, I received a rapid antigen test. I have mentioned the hospitality sector, and I believe this product will be fundamental to what we do after the lockdown when we open up. Does the Minister for Finance have plans to give a tax rebate or tax exemption to companies supplying these products?

Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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Two issues were mentioned in particular regarding the hospitality sector. Last Friday, I met the Irish Hotels Federation and a key issue it is concerned about is the wider support for those in the industry from the Government, for which they are grateful. They would not continue to exist without this high level of support. Separately, today I met a group of 20 hoteliers from the Munster region to discuss insurance. They made a number of key points, which we are taking on board. Some of them rely on underwriters from outside the State and this is an issue we have to look at because in my opinion it is not a fair process that a number of the major hotels in the country have to get their insurance from outside the country because of instability in insurance awards in the past. Some companies have been slow to cover businesses with very high footfall.

With regard to the issue of a State insurance company, I do not think we have any plans to go down that road. We are in the EU. There is free movement of goods and services and it is an essential element of why Ireland joined the EU. For us to say we are not willing to allow that situation to continue and that we want to take over and nationalise the insurance industry in Ireland is not an option.

Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent)
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Arrangements have been made for Deputy Doherty to take Question No. 60.