In this business one can be blamed for many things but I do not think I can be blamed for much of what happened in the past. I am trying to identify ways by which this difficult question can be dealt with as quickly as possible to maintain morale within the Defence Forces and to ensure individuals with a significant handicap attributable to their service in the Defence Forces are compensated adequately while protecting the interests of the taxpayer.
I indicated my desire to establish an Army compensation board. I have been requested on a number of occasions to establish a tribunal. It will be clear to anybody who wants to examine the matter closely that one would establish a tribunal in the knowledge, given the current quantum of awards in respect of minor hearing loss and wear and tear, that the normal compensation payable would be equal to that awarded by the courts. My first obligation, therefore — I fought arduously to ensure this — was to ensure the quantum of awards came down. We have succeeded in the past six to 12 months in securing a significant reduction in awards but they are still too high in respect of minor hearing loss compared to the awards payable to individuals in other organisations. If the level of awards in the courts was to come down quickly to the levels we could afford on foot of what is provided for in the Green Book, the need for a tribunal or Army compensation board would be apparent.
There are more than 12,000 cases and the number continues to grow. It will be clear that it will take the courts a long time to dispose of them. I shudder at the prospect, given the damage that will be inflicted, perhaps permanently, on the Defence Forces and the friction that will be caused between plaintiffs and non-claimants who were on the same range on the same day. I am extremely anxious to move towards a fast-tracking system under which substantial numbers of cases can be handled over a quick timescale but I am caught in a trap as any board or tribunal would have to have regard to the average quantum of awards. In cases of significant disability, they may not be high enough but there is no doubt in anybody's mind that in the case of normal wear and tear they are not in line with those granted in every other jurisdiction. Regrettably, they are too high.