The State will lose millions on a redress scheme to compensate victims of institutional abuse as the value of property owned by religious orders slides. The Department of Education has confirmed that the value of 64 properties due to be transferred to the State as part of the indemnity deal agreed in 2002, was fixed at market value at the time, which has fallen by approximately 11 per cent in the last year.
The State's asset losses could run to millions with one ERSI economist predicting property prices will fall a further 40% in the next eight years.
''The fact that the value of the properties may have fluctuated in the intervening period does not affect the value of the properties in the context of the Indemnity Agreement,'' a spokeswoman for the Education Department said.
Under the terms of a controversial deal to compensate victims of institutional abuse, the State indemnified religious orders from abuse claims in return for €76.8m in property transfers, €41.4m in cash and the provision of an abuse counselling service for abuse victims to the value of €10m.
The total cost of compensation to the taxpayer which was set at €1.1 billion - after the 2005 deadline for redress applications had passed - is set to rise following a Supreme Court ruling last week which cleared the way for a wave of new claims.
The court ruled that the scheme's definition of a child as a person under 18 years was unconstitutional and caused ''unjustified discrimination'' as the law, at the time abuse occurred, defined a minor as a person aged under 21.
To date, the State has received properties worth €26.79m from religious orders with a further €7.5m in transfers almost completed.
The delay in transferring the remaining €32m of properties is due to the fact that the properties are held in complex legal structures.
The spokeswoman said the issue of current market value would only arise where the State intended to sell on a transferred property.
''The vast majority has already been earmarked for specific purposes, for transfer to and use by various charitable organisations and State bodies,'' she said.
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(Source: IC)