Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 11 May 2004
230 Mr. Deasy asked the Minister for Education and Science the plans he has to assist post-primary schools with the huge increase they are experiencing with insurance costs; if he has had discussions with the Tánaiste in this regard and with insurance providers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [13722/04]
View answerResponsibility for arranging insurance cover on school property and against public liability is a matter for the managerial authorities of secondary schools, which are privately owned. It would not be reasonable to expect the state to meet the full insurance costs of privately owned buildings.
Funding is provided to secondary schools by way of per capita grants, which affords schools considerable flexibility in the use of these resources to cater for the needs of their pupils. This is in general a preferable approach to putting in place grants for specific cost items such as insurance. I also hold the view that moving to a position where the Government covers the insurance costs of secondary schools may encourage the insurance sector to keep increasing premiums on the basis that the State would meet the cost. Such an approach would also reduce the incentive for school management to reduce risks.
I am committed to improving the funding position of secondary schools in the light of available resources. At a time of increased financial constraints, the recent announcement of further significant increases in the funding of primary and secondary schools is a clear demonstration of my commitment to prioritise available resources to address the needs of schools.
In the case of primary schools the standard rate of capitation grant has been increased from €57 in 1997 to €121.58 per pupil from 1 January last, an increase of almost 113%. In the case of secondary schools, the standard per capita grant now amounts to €274 from 1 January last as against the rate of €224.74 that applied in 1997. In addition, the support grant, which was introduced under the school services support initiative, was also increased from 1 January last and now stands at €131 per pupil. This increase is in addition to the range of equalisation grants of up to €15,554 per school per annum that was approved in December 2001. A measure of the increase in overall funding for secondary schools is that by comparison with 1997, a secondary school with 500 pupils now receives extra annual funding of up to €108,000 per annum.
Officials of my Department met with representatives of Allianz, the main insurance provider in this sector, in November 2003 and explained that in the period 1998 to 2002 total premiums increased by 70%, of which 50% was attributable to indexation and the remaining 20% to rating increases. It was estimated that the increase for 2003 was 10%. It was anticipated that there would be no increase in 2004, with the possible exception of very large schools where reinsurance factors would be outside the norm.
Tackling the difficulties that are being caused by high insurance premiums is a clear priority for the Government and for my colleague, the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment. A key concern to which the Tánaiste is giving priority is the cost and availability of liability insurance. In this context, the Tánaiste has announced a comprehensive set of inter-related measures designed to improve the functioning of the Irish insurance market. Key initiatives in the reform programme include the establishment of the personal injuries assessment board, the undertaking of a joint study into insurance in conjunction with the Competition Authority and other initiatives in association with the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform.
