Paul McAuliffe (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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312. To ask the Minister for Finance the work done to date on insurance reform; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [34807/20]

Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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The Programme for Government sets out a range of commitments to reform the insurance sector. Work has begun to implement these. In this regard, a Sub-Group of the Cabinet Committee on Economic Recovery and Investment was established by Government to oversee insurance reform implementation, and held its first meeting on 30 September. The Sub-Group on insurance reform is chaired by the Tánaiste, and also includes as standing members, Ministers McGrath, McEntee, O’Gorman and myself, together with Ministers of State Troy and Fleming. I strongly believe this cross-departmental approach provides the best opportunity to address the cost and availability of insurance and will build and expand upon previous commendable work done by the Cost of Insurance Working Group, which published its Eleventh and Final Progress Update report on 30 October.

By way of update, a new insurance reform Action Plan is being developed which will outline a range of deliverables and will be published before the end of the year. Work is also underway in relation to increasing market transparency following the publication of the second private motor report of the National Claims Information Database (NCID) and planned expansion of the scope of the NCID to include employer and public liability insurance; reviewing duty of care legislation; providing for the Judicial Council’s accelerated adoption by 31 July 2021 of new personal injuries guidelines to replace the Book of Quantum; consideration by the Department of Justice of the Law Reform Commission’s recent Report on Capping Damages in Personal Injuries Actions, with a view to presenting options for progressing this by the end of the year; looking at how to further enhance the role of the Personal Injuries Assessment Board; and making proposals on increasing competition in the Irish insurance market. It is my hope that the Sub-Group should be able to report on progress in relation to these before the end of the year. In addition to this work, there has been a fresh round of intensive engagement with key stakeholders. In this regard, Minister of State Fleming has held meetings with the Alliance for Insurance Reform, the State Claims Agency, Insurance Ireland, Irish Public Bodies Mutual Insurance, the Central Bank of Ireland, and Brokers Ireland. More recently, he has commenced a series of meetings with the main insurers in the Irish market. It is also his intention to meet shortly with the Law Society of Ireland and the Bar Council of Ireland.

In conclusion, the Deputy can rest assured that seeking to secure sustainable competition through deepening and widening the supply of insurance in Ireland is a key priority issue for the new Government and that I, Minister of State Fleming will play a lead role to ensure that progress is made in this policy area.