Gerry Horkan (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I will make my points briefly, because we have discussed this on Committee Stage and many of the matters relating to the legislation were discussed in the pre-legislative scrutiny on the Sinn Féin Private Members' Bill in the appropriate committee. We teased out most of the remaining items last week. I welcome the opportunity to contribute to the debate on the Financial Services and Pensions Ombudsman Bill 2017 and to confirm to the Minister of State that Fianna Fáil will support the passage of this Government Bill. Many of the provisions, such as the definition of the consumer and the timeline within which a consumer is able to make a complaint are directly inspired by the FLAC report of 2014, Redressing the Imbalance. The authors of that report must be commended for their extensive work and on other legal protection for individuals. We all want to see better protection for consumers, where they have genuine complaints about services and products which they bought, and that they are able to address those concerns robustly and in a comprehensive manner with the financial services and pensions ombudsman.

I will not rehash the contents of the Minister of State's speech, which was comprehensive. It makes sense to put financial services and pensions ombudsman positions together. The pension is a financial product and it makes sense that it would be with the Financial Services Ombudsman. Physically, they have already merged and this is merely enabling legislation to allow it to take effect in practice. In effect, this Bill replaces or supersedes the Sinn Féin Bill which we passed last week.

It is important that we take on board all its measures. All the positive measures which we agreed to in that Bill last week are comprehensively included in this Bill. We do not want a situation where one Bill contradicts another. There could be a concern that the merging of the two offices may lead to a reduction in the quality of service. We must make it clear that by putting two ombudsman offices together we do not see any diminution in the service provided to either sector, whether it is financial services excluding pensions or pensions. That is an important part of this legislation. It might be the case that its smaller council could make it more focussed. There will be people with a consumer background and others from the financial services and pensions industries. Expertise is important.

The Minister of State discussed a levy. He said that we should look at mediation, where possible. The definitions are important when we are looking at what is or is not a long-term product, and we must make sure that the time limits are comprehensive. The Minister of State mentioned the 15 year back stop which would give many people a reason and opportunity to make their complaints and have it enabled in the legislation.

The Minister of State's conclusion was appropriate. It says exactly what the Bill is about which is merging the offices, improving the time limits, and giving the definitions. I support the Bill and do not want to delay its passage through the House. I commend it and I hope that all parties will work together on it. New politics is criticised sometimes but it is important that when we work together and get a better result it shows that the dynamic here at the moment can encourage Governments to take on the concerns of other parties to produce better legislation for the benefit of everybody.