Olwyn Enright (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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Question 60: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the steps he will take to reform the Garda compensation scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5719/10]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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The Garda Síochána (Compensation) Acts 1941 and 1945 provide for a scheme for compensation for Gardaí who have been killed or maliciously injured in the line of duty. The scheme provides for compensation for the family of a deceased member where death resulted from malicious injury and provides a mechanism to apply to my Department for authorisation for cases of malicious injury of a non-minor nature to be assessed by the High Court. It also provides for compensation to a member for a malicious injury of a minor nature where the duty being performed involved special risk.

There has been a shared view for some time that the existing scheme needs to be replaced with a more efficient process. The scheme, whereby all cases must go to the High Court, is liable to delays and high legal costs, and lacks facilities to settle claims in an efficient manner consistent with recent developments in processing personal injury claims. A Review Committee was formed after a High Court judgement in 1996 and recommended a replacement of the existing scheme. In 2008, my Department, through the Garda Conciliation and Arbitration (C&A) Scheme, revisited the work of the Review Committee.

My Department is currently working with Garda management and in consultation with the relevant stakeholders in the Garda C&A Scheme to develop proposals with the objective of establishing a more cost effective compensation scheme which will deal with compensation claims for malicious injuries in an efficient manner and to the satisfaction of all interested parties. I will carefully consider the final proposals and bring forward any necessary, related legislative measures.