Derek McDowell (Labour)

I move amendment No. 22:

In page 24, subsection (2), line 27, after "requires any" to insert "lodgement, tender or".

This is essentially a technical amendment. Subsection (2) refers to any enactment or rule of court which requires a settlement to be ruled. I am advised by the party's legal people that this is most likely to arise in the case of a lodgement being made and that the court rules to deal with lodgements. That is what we should cover in this section. The whole regime of lodgements, as the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment knows, is basically that if a certain amount is lodged in court, the plaintiff can only recover costs if the lodgement is beaten and the court subsequently awards more than the lodgement that is being made in court by the insurance company. I am told the rules referred to in this subsection should be the rules that relate to lodgements.