Brian Ó Domhnaill (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State. This is a good motion. I disagree with the first part of it, although I wholeheartedly agree with the second part. The motion commends the Government in respect of political reform. The Government has engaged in political reform over the past few years, although it has only tinkered around the edges. Most of the reform focused on local government, the funding of which has been depleted by 300% since the Government took office. The sector is now only in receipt of €1.7 billion, according to the Comptroller and Auditor General's report last week. The effect of that has been the stripping away of services from local government and local democracy. That has not done the political process any good and it has taken accountability away from elected people, which is also not good.

In general, politics has to change. As my colleague, Senator O'Donovan, said, the decision-making capabilities of the State are controlled largely by the four economic Ministers within government and then the Cabinet. The Dáil and Seanad have little input into the decision-making processes of the State. Much of the Dáil's time is devoted to responding to parliamentary questions and Topical Issues instead of cutting to the chase and discussing the meat on the bone of what is happening in our country. I do not only blame the current Government for that; I blame my own party as well when it was in government. This goes much deeper than one party or another. It is something fundamental about the way we practice politics and until that changes, our democracy will always be captured by special interests.That is happening in Ireland and in other western democracies. When decision-making is centralised in the hands of so few people, it is much easier for vested interests to capture them. It is described as "rent seeking behaviour" in economic terms and this is alive and well, unfortunately, in this country.

We only have to refer to the legal profession. The Government dined á la carteon the troika's recommendations in respect of meaningful reform of our institutions, including challenging legal costs to the State and ordinary punters. We must also examine other reforms to give councillors power and accountability instead of stripping them away and to separate the role of national legislators from local administrators. Ultimately, it is wrong that Oireachtas Members must compete with local councillors for votes. We must break out from that system and consider alternatives.

The number of outstanding cases with the State Claims Agency is alarming, according to its annual report. There were 7,221 active claims outstanding at the end of 2014 with a value of €1.469 billion. When the figures are broken down, it is evident that legal costs are increasing instead of decreasing. They increased from €39 million in 2012 to €50 million in 2014. Figures produced this week by the HSE showed an alarming increase in claims against it. The executive came under the remit of the State Claims Agency in 2010. The total paid out in claims against the HSE in 2012 was €83 million. It increased to €125 million in 2013 and €124.5 million in 2014. These were mainly clinical claims. These claims, obviously, need to be managed but, unfortunately, that is resulting in delays in payments to those who need them. The outstanding value of claims is almost €1.5 billion but, generally, between €100 million and €200 million is paid out annually. The legal system manages the payout of the claims. While some claims may prove to be fruitless, claimants are experiencing delays of up to five years. There has to be a better system. The legal profession must be taken out of the equation and a better mechanism to deal with claims must be found. There will be cases where the profession has to intervene on behalf of individuals but, by and large, it is directing the way in which these claims are handled.Out of every €1,000 paid out in respect of a claim, for example, an additional €650 will go to the legal profession, which is fundamentally wrong. It means that out of every €1 million paid out in claims, €650,000 will go to the legal profession. The troika raised this issue in 2009-2010 and I was in total agreement with what it stated. The link between the legal profession and politics has always been strong in this State. Unfortunately, no Minister has been strong enough to take on the system. Yes, I might be castigated for saying this in the House but it must be said. Until the link is broken, and until those who need the money get it and those in the legal profession stop lining their pockets, then a major issue will continue to exist. The taxpayer is also down revenue as a result of this situation. The matter must be addressed. I ask that the Government deals with the issue and this evening's motion is important in that regard. Unfortunately, the Government has almost reached the end of its term. I heard Senator O'Donovan say that an election will not take place until next year and after St. Brigid's Day. Perhaps he has information that the rest of us await.