Hearing on nursing home charges begins

The Supreme Court will begin hearing arguments today on the constitutionality of legislation allowing the Government to deduct charges from the pensions of State care recipients.

The Health Amendment (No 2) Bill was rushed through the Oireachtas in December after the Attorney General advised that the long-established practice of making such deductions was legally unsound.

The Bill would both regularise the practice for the future, and give retrospective sanction to deductions made in the past.

But the President, Mrs McAleese, referred it to the Supreme Court just before Christmas, to test whether any of its provisions are repugnant to the Constitution.

The measure had been widely criticised by opposition parties and groups representing the elderly, who also warmly welcomed its referral by Mrs McAleese.

The hearing is expected to last two days, and the court will have until February 22nd - 60 days after the bill's referral - to deliver its ruling.

Both legal teams have been appointed by the State and each will have the benefit of a former attorney general. The challenge will be led by Mr Eoghan Fitzsimons, attorney general during the final days of the Fianna Fáil-Labour government in 1994, and Mr Brian Murray, SC.

The legislation will be defended by a team including Mr Dermot Gleeson, attorney general under the rainbow coalition from 1994-1997, Mr Paul Gallagher SC and Mr Gerard Hogan SC.

This is the 15th time a president has referred legislation to the Supreme Court, and in only two of the previous cases were measures found to be repugnant: the Matrimonial Homes Bill of 1993, and the Employment Equality Bill 1996.

When deciding to legislate for the pension deductions, the Government announced a €2,000 ex-gratia payment to each of those illegally charged in the past. This will not be affected by the outcome of the Supreme Court hearing.

Equally, the Government has said that if the legislation is upheld, there will be no attempt to recoup charges owing for the period since the practice was suspended.

Some €2 million a week has gone uncollected since the AG advised the Government that the deductions were unsound.