Big cuts to injury payouts
LABOUR TD Ivana
Bacik wants to see the age of consent lowered to 16 and believes it’s time to have another debate on the matter.
It follows the budget on Tuesday which revealed that free contraception will next year be given to girls between the ages of 17 and 25.
Fianna Fail Minister of State Mary Butler said she agrees with the scheme starting at the age of 17 because that is the age of consent.
Minister Butler said the State could be face legal challenges if it offered young girls aged 15 and 16 free contraception.
Consent
But Labour TD Ivana Bacik said Minister Butler’s comments “begs the question about the age of consent and raises questions whether they [the State] are constrained by the age of consent by extending the programme below 17.”
Ms Bacik said it was her own “personal view” that the age of consent should be lowered to 16.
Asked if the State should extend the scheme to girls younger than 17, Ms Butler said: “I believe that Minister [of Health Stephen] Donnelly took the correct approach.”
THE amount of money awarded in personal injury cases fell by more than 40 per cent since new injuries guidelines came into effect in April.
Findings from the Personal Injuries Assessment Board ( PIAB) show that the average award now stands at €14,233.
New guidelines came into effect in April and applied to cases where proceedings had not been commenced or where the PIAB had not made an assessment of damages at that time.
More than 2,600 personal injury claims have been assessed to date and the average award has been reduced by €9,654 from €23,877 to €14,233.