Linda Nelson Murray
Industrial and Commercial Panel · Fine Gael · Ireland
“Navan hospital always needs to be strengthened, not sidelined. We need investment in that to grow with the population that is growing in Meath, and that Meath people have a hospital that grows with their needs and does not fall behind. I am discussing this with the Minister for Health, Deputy Jennifer Carroll MacNeill.”
“The Irish Cancer Society is in the news today. We met its representatives last week and had a very good engagement over in Buswells Hotel where they were giving us some numbers. I wanted to home in on bowel cancer. There are 2,500 people diagnosed with bowel cancer each year in Ireland.”
“We have had amazing debates in here from all sides of the Chamber. Everybody, without a shadow of a doubt, is a pleasure to work with. We can achieve things together whether we are in opposition or in government. I thank everybody. It is really nice to come in to the Chamber and I look forward to it every Tuesday.”
“I thank everybody in that group, particularly the Senators in this Chamber who worked on the group, because it is a day to be acknowledged. Hopefully, we will see it come through quickly. I want to follow on from that by asking the Leader to speak to the Minister, Deputy Calleary, who is working very hard on a baby loss register.”
“Senator Nicole Ryan and I, with other Senators, including Senators Patricia Stephenson, Tom Clonan and Evanne Ní Chuilinn, and many TDs - it was a complete cross-party Oireachtas group - came together and have been working on how to actually do this over the last year. Today is a very positive day for all of us in our group.”
“It was about a year ago that we had a very emotive debate in the House when Senator Nicole Ryan brought suggestions for a Bill on miscarriage leave. I was on this side of the House. It was very hard to actually be debating it when I think everybody in this House wanted to see something like that happen.”
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“In Ireland, one in three women will be subjected to psychological, physical and sexual abuse by a partner or ex-partner. Last year, women told Women's Aid that their partners or ex-partners were subjecting them to a broad and brutal pattern of abuse. The impacts on these women were chilling and ranged from exhaustion, isolation, hopelessness and serious injury, with some women suffering miscarriages. In 2024, Women's Aid national and regional front-line services were contacted 32,000 times. What I learned in all of this is that when a woman is brave enough to get out and leave her partner, 33% of them are still being subjected to domestic abuse. Specialist services are still overstretched and underfunded and therefore challenged to meet ever-increasing demand, especially to meet the needs of more marginalised and minoritised women.”
“To any man who assaults a woman: shame on you. To any man who monitors a woman, controls her moves, where she is, what she is doing, her finances: shame on you. To any man who grabs his partner's phone to look at who she is speaking to: shame on you. To any man who makes a woman feel isolated, hopeless, suicidal, with nowhere to turn, then shame on you. To any man who allows his children to see any of this behaviour, what impact are you having on their lives? Shame on you. Today, like my colleague, we read in the annual report for Women's Aid that we have recorded the highest level of both contact by victims-survivors and disclosures of domestic abuse in its 50-year history. Behind every woman and child is a family navigating fear and trauma.”
“On 5 March 2024, the personal injury guidelines committee of the Judicial Council submitted the outcome of its review of the personal injury guidelines to the board of the council. This means that businesses will all pay the price, as it will be passed on to policy holders. I have brought this up many times in the Upper House. Only a week ago, my colleagues and I brought a motion to this House on insurance. All of us, bar one Senator, stated that the increase in the personal injury guidelines were excessive. We cannot allow this to go ahead without performing the SME test. We brought in the SME test for businesses to allow us to consider impacts on businesses when policy and legislation is before us. I call on the Minister for enterprise to enact the SME test on the personal injury guidelines before any decision is made to implement them.”
“I want to speak about the SME test that was introduced by the Government as part of a series of measures in May 2024. This is a no-brainer because it means that any major new measure from the Government will be assessed for its impact on small businesses through an enhanced SME test. In all cases, they must include a completed SME test or provide an explanation as to why it is considered to not be required. It is important that policy makers employ the principle of "think small first" and consider how the measure will impact business. Ireland's SME test comprises a four-step process: consultation, identification, impact and mitigation. If ever this test was needed, it is at this stage when the personal injury guidelines look likely to come before us with an increase of 16.7%.”
“Sometimes the Ministers and Ministers of State who come to the House do not. The Minister of State looks like she is interested in what we are saying. I hope she will bring it back to the Department.”
“To go back to my home town of Navan, a number of retail businesses are closing, especially in the shopping centre. I welcome the programme for Government entries on small business and enterprise. I see by how well it is covered in our programme that we have a lot of work to do. I admire the ambition of the plan. Businesses have had a lot to deal with in recent years and we need to ensure we continue to support them. Our business in Navan and its employees would not still be here without the Government's supports during the Covid-19 pandemic. Moving forward, I ask the Minister of State to remember that behind every small business is a family praying for success. I say "Hear, hear" to what my colleague said and "Well done" to the Minister of State on her role. What I appreciate is that she looks at each of us when we are speaking.”
“A good few were there, but to go back to the motion, we need to "ensure that regulations, schemes, supports and processes are consistent, necessary, proportional, and effective." Although we have lots of supports in that hub, we need to ensure they are relevant and effective supports for the average small business. In Meath a building was acquired in the Navan IDA park to house the Meath centre of business excellence. This is a very proactive step forward. Competitiveness serves as a vital engine for economic growth. Our competitive edge has brought us this far. I am looking forward to the competitiveness and productivity strategy, which will be published in July. I would like us to examine increased rents and the pressures they put on businesses.”
“I cannot visit a fabulous garden centre online. We need to protect the businesses in our small towns and ensure they are competitive to the bigger cities by ensuring we invest in them. We also need to make sure we keep our car parking spaces. With all that being said, I welcome the establishment of the small business unit within the Department. I know its focus at the moment is on reducing red tape and regulatory requirements to SMEs. The national enterprise hub has more than 180 supports available. As a quick test, I clicked on a few links to see what supports were available for companies with fewer than ten employees.”
“It is important that we examine how we ran the increased cost of business grant last time and learn from the positives, as well as the mistakes we made. I welcome the SME test, but as this test is performed after legislation, I urge that the considerations taken from the test are scrutinised before businesses are impacted. I have gone on about insurance so much that I will not talk about it now, except to say how important it is. I really hope that we do not increase the personal injury guidelines and that we ask Insurance Ireland to commit to reducing premiums based on reforms. We need to protect our local retailers. As I have said in this Chamber before, I cannot get my hair highlighted online and neither can the Minister of State. I cannot renew my glasses online. I cannot meet my friends for coffee online.”
“Thank God I do not like a lot of chocolate. Electricity costs have increased by 96%. The association pointed out something when talking about the increase in the price of beef. We know that, but restaurants cannot apply a 100% increase on a fillet steak in a restaurant. Sometimes the costs of the products are going up, but we cannot pass those increases on. The price of fruit and vegetables has increased by 50%. Purchasing products needed to retail or serve is adding a huge increase in the cost of business. I welcome that the programme of Government states we will set up a "Cost of Business Advisory Forum". This is really important. It would be welcome to hear how the Government is getting on with the establishment of this forum. I hope it has included relevant small business stakeholders.”
“There is no question about that, but we need to support the businesses to support the workers. I welcome that we are looking at restructuring PRSI. I would also welcome that we re-examine how rates are calculated. Commercial rates contribute to the funding of services such as street cleaning, road maintenance, parks, libraries and waste management, but rates are a huge liability on which small businesses can sometimes find difficult to catch up. In the short term, we have increased wages, brought in statutory sick pay, added an extra public holiday and are bringing in the auto-enrolment pension system. Businesses also have higher energy and business costs. I met with the Restaurant Association of Ireland yesterday and could not believe that chocolate has increased in price in the last three years by 157%.”
“We have all set up our own little businesses, stemming from my parents. Sometimes a person need more than hard work, however. A person needs support from the Government; especially from Revenue but also from the local council and local enterprise offices. Our programme for Government states: We will strive to reduce costs for business, cut through unnecessary bureaucracy, ensure access to finance [which can be very difficult; I know many businesses where it is too much to try to apply and source it elsewhere] and invest in vital infrastructure to help businesses succeed. I will begin with the cost of doing business. Our minimum wage has increased by 28% since 2022. Not one person in this Chamber believes that workers should not be compensated for their hard work.”
“I will focus on some great positive strides we are making, while also reflecting on the things that hurt businesses. Ireland is currently experiencing its highest employment levels on record. The number of people employed reached approximately 2.8 million in quarter 1 of 2025, which marks a 3.3% increase compared to the same period in 2024. This is across all ages. The employment rate for individuals aged 15 to 64 reached 75% in quarter 3 of 2024, the highest number on record. The surge in employment reflects the resilience of the Irish economy. Personally, I am from a family of small businesses. I think I drive everyone in this House mad talking about my whole background in small businesses, but I come from a very strong hard work ethic. All of my family are involved in small business.”
“I have often felt that when a small business sets itself up through the Companies Registration Office, if we could even just say "Well done and fair play for being brave and starting your business" to them, it would be something such as a little note or advice on where they could turn to if they needed something. I mentioned it before. I think it went down well, but it is something I would not mind seeing followed through. When my husband and I set up our business 18 years ago, I know that this was definitely how we felt, particularly as the recession had also just begun. As I said, I welcome this motion by my Fianna Fáil colleagues. As spokesperson for enterprise in the Seanad for Fine Gael, I am delighted to speak here today.”
“I said that we should apply almost the same thing to somebody who is starting a new business to somebody who is having a baby. When a woman has a baby, the public health nurse checks on her within a few days of giving birth. The mother goes to the public health nurse again for a checkup after a couple of weeks, and she will see her doctor for her six-week checkup. From then on, between vaccinations and public community clinic visits, the mother has many visits throughout the year. When starting a business, however, many small businesses feel alone and do not know where to turn to.”
“I welcome the Minister of State. I support the motion by my Fianna Fáil colleagues on enterprise today. It is always hard to figure out what part of enterprise one wants to talk about, because there is so much in it. I am very passionate about enterprise. I have always said that behind every small business is a dream. It begins with a dream or vision. A business plan is drafted. Perhaps a loan is taken out or money is invested by the founder. Soon that dream becomes a reality. In many cases, however, this is only for a short while. When reality sets in, the administrative burden kicks off and the next thing is that the founder is in a total sweat. I remember speaking when I was on the SME task force a few years back.”
“Many people in our county would have appreciated being able to watch that game, whether on a streaming device or a television. I would like us to ask the Minister to come to the House and speak to us about how we can make more games available to people who cannot travel. That is important. It is our sport.”
“I raise the issue of being able to watch our beautiful sport of GAA either on streaming devices or television. At the weekend, we saw a titanic victory for Meath, who became the first team since Tyrone in 2008 to beat Kerry and Dublin in the same All-Ireland Senior Football Championship. It was a fantastic win and great for our county - come on the Royals - but unless you went to Tullamore, you had no way to see that match. It was not on GAA+ or the television. You had to wait for the highlights. It is grand for somebody like me who can travel for a game and those with access to a car to go down. For other people, it must be soul-destroying not to be able to see their beloved game. The Meath team did well in the 1990s and is back in form again.”
“In their daily work, an employee in this occupation interacts with a range of colleagues including production/manufacturing managers, quality technicians, production leaders, designers and product developers. I am thinking of a furniture craft course, one for upholstery, maybe one for sewing, and one for frame making. It would have to start small but I truly believe this could be something that would ensure we do not lose this skill in our towns and villages.”
“There are many reasons we stopped programmes like this, including imports coming in, but another reason was that the environments many people worked in were not up to the standards they are now. There was no proper programme. I spoke to another manufacturer this morning in light of this. He has taken on two apprentices whom he will train in his way. Imagine if he was supported to do this. Imagine if those people were taught the educational side as well as the practical side. I looked up a similar programme in the UK that states: The broad purpose of the occupation is to produce upholstered furniture by preparing and cutting fabrics, creating/repairing frames and joints, selecting and applying suspensions and upholstering frames ...”
“If we do not act now, the skill will be gone. We will end up having to import even more furniture. We know only too well in government how far we have come with the excellent programme of apprenticeships we have now. We know of the choices young people have when it comes to what they can do after they leave school. We have 66 apprenticeship programmes currently and none of them are offering furniture upholstery, polishing, cutting, seamstress or frame making. When my dad was 12 he went straight into an upholstery apprenticeship for four years and was a highly skilled and valued worker in the 1950s. He was in such high demand. My dad could look at any suite and know exactly how to make that suite, go back to his bench, take down a roll of cloth and cut it without any templates.”
“It is a dying trade, which is unfortunate. We all have to admit that nothing is as nice as getting furniture made locally. Upholstery is not just about having your suite made. It is about upholstering bar stools and restaurant furniture. It is specific furniture for bowling alleys. It is the seats people sit on in aeroplanes. It is the upholstery used in caravans and mobile homes. It is a skill for boats and ships. We had this skill in Ireland but we are losing people in this industry because we do not have a specific apprenticeship scheme. I have been told by manufacturers that in the next ten to 12 years this trade will be completely lost. The Minister of State will be hard-pressed to find an upholsterer now who is not out the door busy. The average age of people in this industry is 50 to 70 years.”
“The apprentices of the fifties became the factory owners of the sixties, and the cycle repeated itself. At one stage, out of a population of 6,500 in Navan, 1,000 to 1,200 people were employed in the furniture industry. In fact, furniture was so big in Navan that each year we had a massive trade show, where manufacturers came together to showcase their stunning pieces. These days, there are probably ten to 15 places still manufacturing, which is a far cry from the glory days. It is not just a trend in Navan, it is across the whole country. We see thousands of imports, including flatpack, particularly from Asia, coming into the country. It is very hard to get your favourite suite re-upholstered. Years ago, people invested in a suite and got it re-upholstered but, sadly, we do not see much of that anymore.”
“Will I be able to get an answer? I thank the Minister of State for coming in. I wish to raise the issue of apprenticeships in the furniture industry. Some say that the great wind of 1839 was the start of the furniture industry in Navan, County Meath. The big wind occurred on the afternoon of 6 January and swept across Europe, causing major damage and resulting in several hundred deaths. We had a plentiful supply of trees, the tools were there on the ground and we were ready to go. Fast forward to the 1960s and 1990s, and furniture in Navan was huge. Upholsterers and cabinet-makers were members of almost every family, with 70 to 100 furniture-makers in the town. Navan is only an hour from Dublin, as everyone knows, so people came in their droves to buy furniture. My dad was one of those manufacturers.”
“Even though we have introduced all these great reforms – and I am proud to have played a really small part in bringing that to the attention of many people – we have a long way to go. I know the Minister of State in terms of his work, and I trust that he will do it. He does understand it all. He is a difficult position in relation to the personal injury guidelines. I do not think he wants to see an increase. I hope we do all we can in that regard. Senator Casey also comes from a small business background. He, too, raised the importance of there not being an increase or even that we would negotiate the percentage. I thank the Minister of State for coming before the House. I really appreciate it. I thank him for accepting the motion. I thank the nine Fine Gael Senators who came here today.”
“On the capping of legal fees in the District Court and the Circuit Court, I suggest bringing fees in the Circuit Court to the level that applies in the District Court. That is something we might look at. Fine Gael has made a good submission. Most of the other parties put in good submissions. I said that the Department received more than 60. In fact, it got 73. This shows the appetite among the different firms and associations. They really want to see it. Earlier, I met the Small Firms Association. It conducted a survey six to 12 months ago in which 45% of its 2,000 members reported an increase in their premiums. That is nearly half. Asked about the top three issues affecting businesses the most, the first was labour costs and the second was insurance.”
“Over the past two years, motor premiums have increased. I am scared about the report for the latter part of last year. They went up by 9% in the first half, and I would say that they increased even more in the second half. That is scary. Younger drivers are doing very well in relation to incidents, but they are being penalised by having to pay premiums of the order of €4,000. I would like these drivers to be considered also. I welcome the right to forget for cancer survivors in the context of insurance. A number of colleagues referred to this matter. After everything people go through when it comes to cancer, the last thing they need is having to fight to get insurance. They do not need any more stress.”
“I am glad the Minister of State responded on that and that he said it is not too late. I hope we might reconsider this before it comes across our desks, because none of us is comfortable with it. I would appreciate it if it could be examined. When I was a councillor, I sat on IPB. The only conference I got to go to was very informative. I could not understand how IPB was able to say that because of the Government’s reforms, it had reduced its premiums to all local authorities by 30%, yet we have not seen that from the private insurance market in the context of public liability, employers’ liability or motor insurance claims. The Minister of State indicated that the number of motor insurance claims is down since 2016. If we look back to 2010 or 2007, however, we can see that they are far higher. It depends on the period one looks at.”
“I thank the Minister of State for everything he highlighted. I really appreciate it. Since 2020, we have put a great deal of work into everything relating to insurance reform. One of the first things was the establishment of a Cabinet subcommittee. I do not think we had seen anything like that over the previous 15 years, so it was important. I would like the subcommittee to meet regularly and deal with the issues that have been raised here today. A few of my colleagues raised issues that the Minister of State might come back on afterwards. For example, thatched houses were referred to quite a lot. Occupiers’ liability is another issue in the context of people coming onto land and farmers being worried. I am grateful colleagues mentioned that they think an increase of 16.7% is excessive.”
“Right now, businesses are faced with a myriad of increased costs, which we hear about every day, and we simply cannot add fuel to the fire by doing something that will drive premiums up. As I mentioned previously in this House, I am one of those people who has been impacted. I absolutely know what is going on. Over the past few years, we have witnessed an excellent programme of insurance reform delivered by the previous Government. I strongly urge the Minister of State to invest the time in keeping this up. Our programme for Government committed to further action to drive down insurance costs impacting households, motorists and businesses. This is now our first early test. I trust the Minister of State not to let his local GAA club, local café, local crèche and local parades down. I ask him to please do all he can.”
“On its fun day last year, my GAA club of Navan O'Mahony's could not put a bouncy castle on site because it could not get insurance. It could not put in anything inflatable. Parades and festivals have stopped because of insurance. We do not want to see insurance for our cars, cafés, community groups, charities, football clubs and golf clubs rise. I guarantee that if we agree to the 16.7% increase as outlined in the personal injury guidelines, that is exactly what will happen. It will also impede the work of the Injuries Resolution Board even though the previous Government did all it could to get claims processed through it. Legal costs are already a substantial problem and will only increase if this proposal is adopted.”
“Premiums are given without fully explaining the key contributions towards that premium, including wages, footfall, risks, claims and price increases. It is a failure for policyholders that premiums provided to them are not fully transparent. There must be greater transparency as to why the benefits of the reforms to date have not been passed on. Insurance companies should be required to clearly outline the rationale for year-on-year premium increases where there have been no claims on the policy. I could go on and on on this subject; I could take the full 16 minutes without any problem. This is the reason I came into politics. It started with me trying to save my business and businesses like mine. That moved on to trying to help sports clubs, playgrounds, community facilities and motorists - everything that involved insurance.”
“Consideration should be given to whether fee scales can be implemented, as has happened in other jurisdictions. Why would we not ensure legal fees in personal injuries are more transparent so we could know exactly where the fees came from? Can we just restrict aggressive advertising for high claim awards in social media? TikTok, Instagram and Facebook have lots of such ads. The legal profession should not be allowed to ask the claimant to seek a medical report unless this has been recommended by a medical professional. The issue of transparency is the killer for most people. Through all forms of social media, we know that transparency in everything is vital and this is just as true for insurance.”
“The timeframes for settling cases through the Injuries Resolution Board should be reduced, with increased resources and staff provided where necessary. There needs to be a major public awareness campaign to make people aware that the Injuries Resolution Board is the fastest and most effective avenue to resolve their claims. The board needs access to information on all settlements to allow it to carry out accurate reporting on adherence to the personal injury guidelines and, in particular, to closely monitor and compare the difference in award amounts settled through litigation. We need to explore the feasibility of moving the insurance link framework to the Injuries Resolution Board. Legal fees can often exceed the injuries awards paid out, as reflected constantly in newspaper articles.”
“The NCID report also shows that cases that go to litigation take almost six years to settle whereas it takes only two years through the Injuries Resolution Board. Therefore, it is disappointing to note that the volume of cases going through litigation has actually increased by 17% between 2019 and 2023. The Injuries Resolution Board is the fastest and most cost-effective method for resolving claims. The Minister of State has been very much involved in this. It is fantastic. The Government needs to make every effort to ensure claims are progressed and settled through this channel. Therefore, I ask for a full review of the legislation underpinning the Injuries Resolution Board to be carried out to examine how it can be further strengthened.”
“We need a separate independent commission made up of the Injuries Resolution Board, stakeholders and policyholders, and - real information. If it is not too late, I call on the Minister of State to negotiate those increases. Let us not let down all the those in businesses, groups and sports clubs around the country, many of whom are watching this debate right now. The Minister of State must try to fix this for everyone's sake. The NCID liability report found in 2023 that the average legal costs were less than €1,000 for cases finalised at the Injuries Resolution Board but over €23,000 once they entered litigation while awards for claimants were the same in either channel at €23,000.”
“I am not an expert on inflation, but I believe it is approximately 1.9%. On this, I ask the Minister of State to do the following: please, change the review of the personal injury guidelines to seven years, let us wait for the data from cases through the court system and settlements out of court, and let us analyse it properly. Do not let the Judicial Council decide on awards. Section 90 requires looking at awards outside the State. The Judicial Council's 2020 report comparison with England no longer holds as there are much lower values for soft tissue injury there. For example, when England reviewed its tariff on soft tissue injury, it undertook a process calling for evidence submission. It got experts and real-life evidence.”
“The second is the jurisprudence of the Superior Courts that emerged in the period regarding the proper approach to the assessment of damages in multiple injuries cases. The Committee did not find it possible to carry out any meaningful analysis of the quantum of court awards given under the Guidelines that might inform this review. This is because the inevitable delay between the commencement of proceedings to which the then new Guidelines applied and their trial has meant few award decisions have been reached - certainly not enough to be statistically significant. If this is the case, why are we not waiting for meaningful data? The report also states that the board decided to modify the guidelines in order to reflect the HIPC rate applicable at the time of its consideration of the draft amendments to the guidelines.”
“Now, the Minister for justice is considering increasing awards by 16.7% before we have even seen the impact of the first reduction. The Minister for justice has received a recommendation to increase these awards, and this has come from the Judicial Council. Would we ask the Judicial Council to come up with sentences for murder or theft? If there is a separation of powers there, why is there not a separation of powers here? I want to read an excerpt from the draft guidelines presented to the Minister for justice. In carrying out its review, the Committee had regard to [two matters in particular] ... The first is the fact that in the three years since the adoption of the original Guidelines, significant global and national inflation has occurred.”
“A tool-lending library here in Ireland, a great initiative, has managed to secure a policy that represents 75% of its budget, which for many start-ups could mean imminent failure before they even begin. I will focus on a few points, and the Minister of State knows what I am going to talk about first - the legislation surrounding the personal injury guidelines. He and I have spoken about this and it is something I cannot give up on. I feel that he understands what I am saying. Personal injuries sustained by visitors to businesses and public spaces between 2019 and 2023 have seen a 40% reduction in claim volumes since we introduced these guidelines. In addition, claims in cafés, hotels and restaurants more than halved while shops and stores saw a 44% decrease and sports and athletic areas experienced a 38% reduction.”
“In just one year, a restaurant in the south east saw its insurance premium surge by 23% despite having no claims in recent years. There were no incidents and no payouts. There was no justification, so why the hike? Over the past two years, a Cork restaurant's insurance premium has jumped by 30% without a single claim on its record. This is indefensible and exposes the broken nature of our insurance market. The circular economy is going to become increasingly important as our carbon emissions come under increased scrutiny in the years ahead. Recycle IT decided to compare what it was paying in Ireland with what its counterpart in the UK was paying. Guess what? Granted, Recycle IT's turnover is three times higher than the UK organisation, but its premium is 17 times higher, with one paying €51,000 and the other paying £2,100.”
“Today's motion recognises the work the Government has done. The 2020 action plan for insurance reform delivered significant progress and only two weeks ago, stakeholders had a chance to give input into another examination of insurance reform. I believe there were approximately 60 submissions, which is fantastic. Real-life examples are important when discussing an issue such as insurance. Today, as Members have probably seen, Chill Insurance has released a car insurance index showing that people in counties like Longford pay on average €1,042 for car insurance. Those in my county of Meath pay an average of €785 for car insurance. I have heard that a publican in Cork recently had his premium increase from €5,500 to €6,300, an increase of approximately 14.5%. A publican in Donegal had a premium increase from €6,000 to €7,500, or 25%.”
“The article continues: "With two claims pending, she has been refused cover renewal and may now have to close [her business] in Navan, with the loss of 12 jobs". Thankfully, that did not happen, but it almost did. The only reason my business is still open is that like-minded businesses in the leisure sector came together to form a group called Play, Activity and Leisure Ireland, PALI. In that group, we got a group insurance scheme and so, in a sense, we all support each other. Getting that scheme set up and continuing it has required a huge amount of work both from when I was involved and by the current team in PALI. Today, those people are in an insurance meeting trying to get the next scheme going. They should not have to do it but without it, we would not all be open; it is as simple as that.”
“The increase in the personal injury guidelines, as recommended by the Judicial Council, of 16.7% is excessive. As I was preparing for this over the past couple of days, I reflected on the first time I spoke about horrendous insurance difficulties facing businesses, which was on 24 January 2019. There I was, sitting in a ball pool in my soft-play centre, full of hope and enthusiasm that we could do all we could when it came to insurance reform to save businesses like mine. An article in the Irish Examiner reads: "Linda Murray has vowed to go down fighting after failing to get insurance renewed on her own play centre in County Meath, where premiums have spiralled from €2,500 to €16,500 in just five years". It was my insurance that had gone from €2,500 to €16,500.”
“I move: That Seanad Éireann: acknowledges: - the publication, in 2020, of an Action Plan For Insurance Reform; - that there have been four Action Plan Implementation Reports to date; - the establishment of the Office to Promote Competition in the Insurance Market; - the introduction of new personal injuries guidelines in April 2021, which set reduced levels for personal injury compensation and changed the amounts of General Damages to be awarded by the courts and by the Injuries Resolution Board; - the reform of the Injuries Resolution Board to include the provision of mediation as a means of resolving a claim in employer liability claims; giving the Injuries Resolution Board a role in providing information analysis and awareness raising; a requirement for proof of identity (PPS Number) and confirmation that the medical report provided at the time of a claim contains details of the injuries sustained in the incident which gave rise to the claim and the disclosure of information to An Garda Síochána to reduce fraud; - the making, in 2021, of perjury as a statutory offence for the first time, to help address insurance fraud; - the re-balancing of the Duty of Care with new legislation enacted in July 2023; - the strengthening of the Solicitors Advertising Regulations 2019 with the Legal Services Regulatory Authority regulations which came into effect in December 2020; - that there has been an increase in coordination and cooperation between An Garda Síochána and the insurance industry in relation to fraud; - the establishment of an Insurance Fraud Coordination Office within An Garda Síochána, to allow for uniformity in the reporting and processing of cases of suspected fraud, as well as offering support to Divisional-level investigations and providing accurate statistics on the number and trends of cases; - the enhancement of the National Claims Information Database; notes the Government’s efforts to promote competition in the Irish insurance market: - by encouraging greater competition between existing insurers, including through expanding product offering; - by encouraging new entrants to enter the insurance market, be they new domestic companies, companies ‘passporting’ in from EU/EEA member States, or companies from third countries outside the EU/EEA; - by considering new initiatives to assist in advancing the above objectives, having regard to the EU Directives pertaining to insurance; EU state aid rules; EU and national competition law; and the statutory independence of State bodies; further notes: - the recent Public Consultation by the Department of Finance on a new Action Plan for Insurance Reform; - the launch in May 2024 of a new system which allows members of An Garda Síochána to quickly and easily identify uninsured vehicles; - the significant reduction in the number of uninsured vehicles over the last 12 months; calls for further action on insurance reform including: - greater transparency on how insurance premiums are calculated to ensure the benefits of Government reforms are passed on to consumers and businesses; - the extension of the review of the personal injuries guidelines to every seven years to avoid excessive increases; - the introduction of tougher penalties on those who commit insurance fraud; - the encouragement of more competition from international insurance companies; - increased affordability and availability of insurance; - the encouragement of faster release of data from the National Claims Information Database to improve transparency; - the development of new guidelines on rates and fees on all forms of civil litigation and the taking of further steps to resolve cases outside of court; - the maintenance of the Cabinet sub-committee on insurance reform; - the prioritisation of legislating for the ‘Right to be Forgotten’ for cancer survivors; - the strengthening of the Injuries Resolution Board to support the resolution of cases outside of court; - the mitigation of the impact of climate change on insurance, including extreme weather risks and the insurance protection gap; - the enhancement of Ireland’s position as a leading insurance hub in Europe and internationally; - the promotion of Insurtech innovation and digitalisation.”
“I refer to rural residents, low-income populations, immigrants and people with disabilities. Going back to what my colleague, Senator Maria Byrne, mentioned, let us get the 27% of people who are not going to BreastCheck. Let us do a little advertising campaign for them and get them to attend. Significant investment continues to be made in the cancer screening programmes. The Minister mentioned that additional funding of €2.9 million was allocated to BreastCheck, which I very much welcome, but we must commit to building and actioning a system that is faster and fairer for every mother, daughter, sister, friend, and man who faces this diagnosis.”
“If we know BreastCheck saves lives, then let us save more lives. I wish to raise something I knew nothing about until it was raised by my colleague, Senator Cosgrove, that is, breast density. I never even heard of it until she said it. Nearly 50% of Irish women have dense breasts, which masks tumours on mammograms. We cannot tell how dense our breasts are by looking at them or feeling them. Dense breast tissue appears white on a mammogram. The big "but" is that cancer also appears white on a mammogram. I urge that we would research this more and make patients aware of it at their exam. Do they need a triple check breast exam, like they have in the Mater hospital? We must boost screening and uptake access. Marginalised communities have a lower uptake and they often face significant disparities.”
“Some 13% of women are diagnosed between the ages of 15 and 44 and 26% of women between 45 and 54, but I was not aware that a further 19% of women over the age of 75 are diagnosed. The BreastCheck programme must include those aged 45 to 49 and 70 to 74. We know that diagnosis leads to better outcomes and we should align ourselves with the upper age limit in the EU of 74. I appreciate that the Minister has reported the NSAC is progressing work to consider the further expansion of the cancer screening programmes and has submitted a request to HIQA to assess the evidence for a proposed expansion of the age range eligibility of the BreastCheck programme, in particular for those aged 45 to 49 and 70 to 74. I strongly support this. I urge that it would happen sooner rather than later.”
“It is helping to get breast cancer before it becomes advanced, with early detection, aiding in treatment and by providing support. We are making great strides. The Minister mentioned that. She gave us a great introduction. At total of 3,500 women are diagnosed with breast cancer each year in Ireland. It is estimated that one in seven women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime, and one in 700 men. Today, I want to speak about how we must improve breast cancer services in Ireland. To begin, we need to lower the age. I welcome what the Minister said earlier. We must also expand the age. We should open the screening out. I am going to turn 50 on 26 August. I am letting everybody know now as we might have a little party. As soon as I wake up on that morning, I am registering for BreastCheck.”
“Self-examination is key. If anyone takes anything from my speech today, I plead with them to hear the words "self-examination". The Minister is very passionate about health. I welcome the opportunity to speak to her today about BreastCheck and breast cancer. As we are all aware, breast cancer is the commonest invasive cancer among women. It touches the lives of thousands of individuals and families in Ireland and leaves a lasting impact. I know that only too well from my own family. Almost every person in Ireland knows somebody in their family who has faced this diagnosis. Only last week, one of my dear friends was diagnosed with breast cancer, thankfully early, because of BreastCheck. Some families have lost people far too soon but, thankfully, BreastCheck is saving lives by offering free mammograms to those aged 50 to 69.”