Mike Kennelly (Fine Gael)

I welcome the Minister of State to the House. I welcome the proposal and acknowledge the work Senator Linda Nelson Murray and her seconder have put into this.

I, too, am against the very excessive increase of 16.7% proposed by the Judicial Council following the review of the personal injuries guidelines. This proposed change would undermine the progress we have made in rebalancing the system. It would send the wrong message, not just to insurers but also to every small business owner, community group and ordinary consumer who was promised a fairer, more affordable insurance market.

I speak today to support this motion, which both recognises the work done so far on insurance reform and outlines the critical next steps. Since the action plan for insurance reform was published in 2020, we have seen genuine progress. Four implementation reports have tracked that work and the crucial steps that have been taken, such as the establishment of the office to promote competition in the insurance market and the introduction in 2021 of the personal injuries guidelines, which brought greater consistency and reduced compensation levels across many types of claims. The reform of the Injuries Resolution Board is a key milestone. It introduced mediation as a method to resolve employer liability claims, mandated stronger identity verification and required that injuries in claims be tied clearly to the actual incident. All of these are essential measures in reducing fraud and restoring trust in the system.

I especially welcomed the decision in 2021 to make perjury a statutory offence. Insurance fraud is not a victimless crime; it drives up premiums for everyone. The move in 2021 sent a strong message that we would not tolerate dishonesty that penalises honest customers.

We have also rebalanced the duty of care, tightened solicitor advertising regulations, enhanced co-ordination between An Garda Síochána and the insurance industry and established an insurance fraud co-ordination office to ensure consistency and accuracy in fraud detection and reporting. The national claims information database has been expanded, improving transparency and helping policymakers track the real impact of reforms. These are all significant steps but let me be very clear: consumers and business owners are still not seeing the full benefit. They want one thing, lower premiums, and rightly so. That is the ultimate measure of success for any insurance reform.

We cannot claim victory while community groups are struggling to get event cover or small business owners are being squeezed by rising costs. We must demand greater transparency in how premiums are calculated and ensure savings created by reform are passed on to the people paying the bills.

I welcomed the launch last month of a new Garda system to detect uninsured vehicles. This is already showing results, with a significant drop in uninsured driving. This is a real-world example of reform in action.

Looking ahead, we first need to commit to reviewing the personal injuries guidelines every seven years, as indicated by Senator Linda Nelson Murray. We must not increase awards arbitrarily and instead ensure they remain balanced and evidence based. Second, we must prioritise legislation for the right to be forgotten for cancer survivors. A past diagnosis should not mean lifelong insurance discrimination. Third, we should promote insurtech, innovation and competition, including from new domestic and international entrants. Fourth, we should accelerate the release of claims data to keep consumers and policymakers informed. Fifth, we should strengthen the Injuries Resolution Board further so more cases are resolved out of court, saving time and money. Sixth, we should maintain the Cabinet subcommittee on insurance reform to drive political accountability.

We must be honest about emerging risks, especially climate-related risks. In my area, a family affected by flooding in recent years entered the OPW’s relocation programme but still has not found a house. The number of properties that have no insurance because of extreme weather events has to be top of the agenda. The widening insurance protection gap demands a strategic response both to protect people and keep Ireland attractive as a global insurance hub.

At the heart of this issue is a very simple idea: insurance must work for people. This is not about protecting profits; it is about protecting livelihoods. It is about ensuring families, small businesses and voluntary groups can afford the cover they need. The public has been patient and now they deserve results. There is a need to focus, deliver what was promised and ensure the real beneficiaries of reform are the people and businesses of Ireland.