Paddy Burke (Fine Gael)

Everyone agrees with any measures the Tánaiste or anyone else can take to reduce the cost of insurance. Senators have continually expressed concerns on the Order of Business about the rising cost of insurance. It is a matter of great concern to everyone – young drivers, people in business, those with public liability insurance, farmers and builders. Over the last two years, all these groups have experienced huge increases in the cost of insurance.

The Tánaiste has given assurances this evening and we will support her in anything she can do to reduce the cost of insurance. She stated, however, that she will introduce competition and I would like her to elaborate on that. The Tánaiste, over the last 12 months, has introduced regulations that have penalised small brokerages throughout the State. Each small brokerage must now produce seven or eight pages of regulations and post them to people with whom they are doing business, creating a paper mountain. The majority of these small brokerages are going out of business leading to cartels operating in the industry. Insurance companies now refuse to give quotations to certain classes – if that is not a cartel, what is it? The Tánaiste must outline how she will introduce competition because small insurance brokers are labouring under stringent regulations introduced by her in the last two years and are going out of business.