asked the Minister for Finance whether his attention has been directed to the hardship imposed by Emergency Powers (Compensation for Personal Injuries) (Civilians) Scheme, 1942 (First Amendment), 1943 (S.R.O. No. 7 of 1943), on such persons as were prior to the emergency in regular employment with national health insurance stamps and unemployment insurance stamps to their credit but who, through unemployment arising out of the emergency had, before receiving a personal injury entitling them to compensation under this scheme, exhausted their benefit and are now in receipt of unemployment assistance, and will therefore receive compensation only on the unemployment assistance basis; and whether, in view of the fact that had the regular employment of such persons not been discontinued by reason of the emergency, they would have been entitled to receive normal compensation under the scheme, the Minister will amend the scheme to provide for normal compensation in all cases where unemployment insurance stamps had, prior to the emergency, been to the credit of injured persons.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Compensation for Civilian Injuries.
No representations have been made to me in the matter referred to in the Deputy's question. To give effect to the suggestion now made would involve an investigation, in every case of an insured person who was unemployed at the date of injury, as to whether in fact his employment had been discontinued by reason of the emergency, and might lead to an indefensible discrimination as between persons whose employment might have been so terminated and other insured persons whose benefit had been exhausted but whose unemployment could not be attributed to the emergency. I am satisfied that the only reasonable and consistent course to adopt in connection with claims generally is to deal with persons who have received injuries by reference to their actual condition as at the date of injury. I regret, therefore, that I cannot undertake to amend the scheme on the lines suggested by the Deputy.