Brendan Daly (Fianna Fail)

I am glad to welcome the Minister of State. I appreciate the work he is doing on aviation generally. What is the European view on this issue? In the maritime area, a similar scenario occurred and an international fund has been long established. Ireland has had to pursue a number of claims and, although the claims process is slow, the fund is important. An application was made for substantial funding following the Kowloon Bridge incident. I am not sure whether the full amount was received but that is a matter for another day. The EU is contemplating a new directive later this year. Where will this legislation fit in that context? It would be important to keep in mind what the EU will do in this area. The Union might establish an international fund that could be drawn from in the event of large claims, such as those contemplated here.

It is not my wish that the State would take over responsibilities undertaken by insurance companies until now, to which Senator Dooley referred earlier. It would not be proper to expect taxpayers to deal with a situation where insurance companies that have been gaining substantial funding under these policies for many years would now have taxpayers' money substituted for theirs. We have seen some such activity regarding consultants in another Department within which the Minister of State had some responsibility not so long ago. The State was expected to step in and pick up a bill where premia had already been paid to companies.