§ Mr. McCuskerasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what is the proportion of claims for compensation for mental or nervous shock under the Criminal Injuries to Persons (Northern Ireland) Act which are not contested by the Northern Ireland Office.
§ Mr. ConcannonCompensation payments for criminal injuries to persons are made in accordance with the provisions of the Criminal Injuries to Persons (Compensation) Act (Northern Ireland) 1968. The Northern Ireland Office can contest a claim for compensation on the basis of liability or quantum or both. At 28th April 1976, 16,971 claims had been settled under the Act and it would require a disproportionate effort in terms of staff time and costs to calculate the proportion of claims for mental or nervous shock which have not been contested.
§ Mr. McCuskerasked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many claims for compensation for mental or nervous shock have been paid in respect of children under 2 years of age and under 5 years of age.
§ Mr. ConcannonRecords on criminal injuries to persons have not in the past been kept in a form which enables this information to be provided without a disproportionate expenditure of staff time and resources. However, figures are available for the calendar year 1975, during which period 40 children under 5 years of age were awarded compensation under the Criminal Injuries to Persons (Compensation) Act (Northern Ireland) 1968 for mental or nervous shock. Four of these children were under 2 years of age.