1127. Deputy Eamon Scanlon asked the Minister for Rural and Community Development and the Gaeltacht further to Parliamentary Question No. 1590 of 20 March 2024, if the BDO report commissioned by his Department in 2023 on the cost and availability of public liability insurance for the community and voluntary sector has been finalised; when the final report was received, if applicable; if outstanding, the reason for the delay and expected completion date; whether the report has been or will be published; and if so, when and where it may be accessed. [73645/26]

Action 23 of the National Volunteering Strategy 2021-2025 was to “Represent the views of the sector in relation to the impact of the cost and availability of public liability insurance on volunteering through engagement with the Insurance Reform Sub-group of the Cabinet Committee on Economic Recovery and Investment, which was established to implement the Government’s insurance reform agenda”.

In furtherance of this action, independent research was commissioned to investigate the impact of insurance costs and liability on the Community and Voluntary Sector in Ireland. Undertaken following a competitive tendering process, the purpose of the research project was to understand and represent the views of the national and international Community and Voluntary sectors in relation to the impacts of the cost and availability of public liability insurance.

The final report was presented by the researchers to the National Volunteering Strategy Implementation Group in March 2024.  While the report was not published, it is available from the Department on request.