Vol. 403 No. 1
42 Mr. R. Bruton asked the Minister for Justice whether he has satisfied himself with the level of compensation payable in fatality cases where the deceased was in receipt of social welfare at the time of death; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
152 Mr. R. Bruton asked the Minister for Justice whether he has considered amending the criminal injury award scheme so that compensation for the loss of a parent would not be dictated almost entirely by the level of earnings at the time of death.
I propose to take Questions Nos. 42 and 152 together.
The scheme of compensation for personal injuries criminally inflicted is administered by the Criminal Injuries Compensation Tribunal. Under the terms of the scheme, compensation to be awarded by the tribunal is on the basis of damages awarded under the Civil Liability Acts, with specific stated exceptions, one of which is that compensation will not be payable in respect of loss or diminution of expectation of life. In fatal cases the tribunal may make an award to dependants in respect of mental distress and to cover loss of earnings or income, including future loss — the award in the latter area is related to income at the time of the injury or death of the victim.
I have no proposals to amend this scheme.
