Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe will outline his strategy to Cabinet on how to advance legislation which seeks to ensure that people who have survived cancer should not be penalised for their past health experiences when trying to buy a home or other financial activities.
The Programme for Government includes a commitment to legislate for a statutory "Right to Be Forgotten" for cancer survivors, and Minister Donohoe will say that the Coalition remains fully committed to achieving that aim through its Central Bank Amendment Bill.
It is understood that the Department of Finance has engaged extensively with stakeholders, including the Irish Cancer Society, Insurance Ireland, regulators, and international peers, in order to identify the most appropriate and effective means to progress this legislation.
Minister Donohoe is now recommending that Government time is used to progress this bill through second stage.
It is expected that committee stage amendments are also being prepared, and the Department of Finance will work in consultation with the Attorney General's Office, to ensure the bill is fully compliant with EU law and operationally viable.
The amendments will ensure that the bill is focused on mortgage protection insurance, in line with EU best practice.
In advancing the Central Bank Amendment Bill, the Government has incorporated and amended proposed legislation by Fianna Fáil TD for Dublin South Central Catherine Ardagh who has continued to work on the new bill, along with Minister of State Robert Troy.
