South Cork air ambulance service
Michael Moynihan said a new air ambulance service for the south was ready to begin but still awaited ministerial sign-off, and asked why approval had not been granted. The Taoiseach said he would ask the Minister for Health to contact the Deputy and confirmed the service was important, especially alongside the northern service.
On Deputy Michael Moynihan's question, I am aware that the new air ambulance service for the south of the country is awaiting approval but I am not sure of the details as to why the Minister for Health is unable to approve it at this stage. I will certainly let him know that the Deputy has raised the matter and ask him to communicate with the Deputy directly. We are all keen to see that service up and running as we would then have two services up and running, one for the northern part of the country and the other for the southern part. It is important to get this service right, and I know the Deputy is also keen for that to be the case as well.
On insurance, the Minister of State, Deputy D'Arcy, is working very hard on this issue. We are aware of the cost of insurance and how it is impacting on people and businesses, particularly in respect of public liability. We have enacted three items of legislation in the past year to bring about changes and improvements in respect of insurance but it may be a while before we see those efforts translate into lower premiums. The next step is the Judicial Council Bill 2017, which is currently before the Oireachtas.