Vol. 535 No. 3
8 Mr. Boylan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the relationship between the proposed personal injuries assessment board and the courts; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [12417/01]
12 Mr. Boylan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the savings envisaged for consumers in respect of the introduction of a personal injuries assessment board; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [12418/01]
17 Mr. Crawford asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if she will outline a timeframe for the introduction of the new personal injuries assessment board; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [12419/01]
26 Mr. Gilmore asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment when she will bring forward legislation to provide for the establishment of a personal injuries assessment board; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [12186/01]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 8, 12, 17 and 26 together.
In accordance with the recent Government decision on this matter, an interdepartmental implementation group has been set up to progress the establishment of a personal injuries assessment board to be known as PIAB. The group convened its first meeting earlier this week.
The Courts Service is represented on the group and the issue of the relationship between the courts and the PIAB will be addressed in the course of the group's work. The intention is that the PIAB, at this point in time, will operate within the overall courts structure. The group, which also includes a representative from the Office of the Attorney General, will consider what legislative changes, if any, are necessary in advance of the PIAB being established. The group hopes to submit its report before the end of this year, with the PIAB becoming operational in 2002.
We are confident that the establishment of the PIAB will achieve a reduction in the delivery costs of personal injury compensation for work related injuries in its initial term of operation and later in motor injury cases. The special working group which recommended the establishment of the PIAB conducted a preliminary examination of the potential savings that could be achieved in the delivery costs of compensation. While this suggests that such savings would be substantial, it is difficult to be precise since the extent of the savings will depend, for example, on the proportion of cases in which the PIAB judgment forms the basis of settlement as well as issues such as the operating costs of the new assessment board.
I thank the Minister of State for his reply. Will he agree that with the establishing of a personal injuries assessment board the victim must remain in premier position, as is currently the case? Will he outline the steps he proposes to take to ensure that the employer will not be the main beneficiary of this new board? Will he also outline his views on the bureaucratic layer he intends to set up its relationship with the courts?
The purpose of establishing this board is to ensure that the victim is in premier position, but as of now the victim does not seem to be in that position. The reason for the establishment of the board has been the major cost of delivering personal injuries compensation. Junior counsel is appointed in 57% of cases and senior counsel in 18% of cases here, compared to the UK where junior counsel is appointed in only 3% of cases and senior counsel is rarely, if ever, appointed. There is a huge implication in the cost delivery factor to date, which we must now change. The objective is to eliminate this very high cost factor, to have each case considered in a practical and positive manner and reach a conclusion. When an award is offered, the injured party can then decide whether to accept it or proceed to the courts. The board will deal with issues of quantum only, not liability. It will not interfere with a person's right to take court action, or prejudice any future court action taken by victims. In its first phase of operation, the board will deal with employers' liability claims only.
The legal profession must accept that the delivery cost of personal injuries compensation in Ireland is far too high. In Deputy Flanagan's dual capacity, I would like to hear his position on this matter and whether his party endorses what we wish to achieve, in terms of delivering to the victims of injury quickly, fairly and equitably.
Does the position of Fine Gael have any bearing on whether the Minister will actually set this up?
That is a question in itself.
Why has it taken the Minister four years to get around to talking about setting this up? Do I understand correctly from the Minister's statement today that it is not even set up yet? Is there any commitment to it in the Depart ment? Has the Minister had any discussion on it with either branch of the legal profession? Irrespective of where Deputy Flanagan's party stands on the matter, will the Minister tell the House when a person encompassed by the terms of reference of the board might expect to have their case heard? When does the Minister expect the first case to be heard?
I am very pleased that Deputy Rabbitte is worried about my interest in the Fine Gael position. I am basically interested in the dual role which Deputy Flanagan has, as spokesman for his party and as a very eminent member of the legal profession. Deputy Rabbitte already knows the answers to his questions, as he was involved in initiating this concept. It was not an easy matter to have a report completed and delivered to us. We have got that report and have acted on it. The Government has taken a decision and we are proceeding. I am very confident that, by this time next year, I will be in a position to report to the House on the progress made, following five months of delivery by the personal injuries assessment board from 1 January until May 2002.
What about consultation with the legal profession?
Officials in my Department had a number of discussions with the legal profession. I had a request from the legal profession to meet them. Consultations are continuing at present and I expect a report from the working party of the interdepartmental group. As soon as I get that report, I will be glad to meet the eminent members of the legal profession.
Can the Minister say when the PIAB will begin looking at motor injury claims? Has he had discussions with the insurance industry on this and are they prepared to give a commitment to reduce premia in line with the savings which they are going to make, or will the insurance companies absorb this into their profit margin? Now that the Minister has been in office for nearly four years, what practical steps has he taken during that time to ensure a reduction in the cost of insurance? The Minister has been very good at issuing press releases and launching initiatives—
The Deputy should ask a question only, please.
—but no positive steps have been taken to reduce the cost of insurance.
I am grateful to Deputy Naughten, who feels that I am good at issuing press releases. I thought I was rather weak in that area and I am delighted to hear that it is having an impact.
We expect to commence dealing with personal injuries under employers' liability on 1 January 2002, and to follow up on 1 January 2003, with motor insurance. Discussions are ongoing between the legal, insurance and other interests involved in this situation. The interdepartmental committee has commenced its work. We are very confident that this will be a positive development and it deserves the support of everybody concerned. We have a collective duty to achieve success on behalf of the citizen or consumer who suffers injury.
There are many vested interests who do not like to hear about this. I have no commitment from the insurance industry that they will reduce premiums and I would not expect to get it. I have taken several practical steps over the past few years and I will be answering further questions on that later. Hopefully, we will make further progress in that area, but it is not an easy matter.
The Minister has confirmed to Deputy Rabbitte that he did not engage in any form of consultation with the legal profession. Will he also confirm that he did not engage in any consultation with the Court Services Board? Will he either confirm or deny that those who will sit in a prominent position of authority on this board and will, in effect, make the awards, will be senior managers of insurance companies? Does he consider that to be in the best interests of the victim?
I do not know where Deputy Flanagan is getting his information and I detect that he is not very pleased that we are moving forward with this proposal—
It is my job to find out what is happening.
As I said, consultations are taking place and the Courts Services Board is represented on the interdepartmental working committee.
Only now.
There have been consultations between departmental officials and the relevant agencies. I am quite confident that the very good team which is working on this and reporting to me, is doing an excellent job. I do not see how the Deputy can say that senior managers of insurance companies will sit on a board which has not yet been appointed and for which staff have not yet been recruited. That is just fiction.
The Minister kindly put it on the record of the House that I initiated this particular board. May I remind him that that was four years ago? Will he tell the House why it has taken four years to get to a stage which is still not final? Does the Minister not believe in this personally? During the four years, he has not met the Law Society, the Bar Council or the Court Services Board. The proposed board is still not up and running. I ask the Minister to be frank with us at this stage. If he does not believe in the idea, he ought to tell us so. That uncertainty is being communicated both to the legal profession and to the industry—
Le do thoil.
—that the necessary commitment is not there. Four years later, the Taoiseach would build a £1 billion stadium—
The Deputy should conclude.
—in that length of time. Can the Minister explain the delay?
Deputy Rabbitte is trying to assist inflation with figures like that. The situation is quite simple, as the Deputy well knows. There were two reports, the first of which was initiated by Deputy Rabbitte when he was Minister of State. There was a second report and we waited until it became available. When we have professional people engaged, on a voluntary basis, in giving the State the benefit of their knowledge and experience, we cannot just tell them that they must hurry up their report or that we cannot wait for it. We waited until the report was delivered and it was then assessed. The necessary consultations took place between departmental officials and the relevant agencies. The Tánaiste took a proposal to Government, from whom we got a clear endorsement and commitment. I have total commitment to it, as has the Tánaiste and the Department, and it will happen on 1 January 2002.
I repeat my earlier question to the Minister. He stated that he has not got a commitment from the insurance industry in relation to a reduction in premium. Why did he not ensure that he got that commitment before he decided to go ahead with the PIAB? There was a golden opportunity for the Minister to nail the insurance industry down on this and commit it to it. Why did the Minister not get that commitment?
I do not understand what the Deputy means by that. Insurance is about providing cover for risks taken. The market decides the price of insurance and our job as a Government is to ensure that the measures in position assist in the delivery of protection to the people with cover particularly those who are victims of injury. That is what we are about. We hope those measures will make a huge contribution over the next five to ten years in ensuring that insurance costs level off and are reduced. It would be fiction to say today that the insurance industry could give me a commitment that if I establish this board insurance premiums would be reduced.
Is the Minister satisfied that young people are being charged £5,500 for insurance?
I am satisfied that this board will make a huge contribution to ensuring that equity and a level playing field will prevail in the delivery of cover and liability payments.
