Galway Talks - with John Morley
Oct 16, 2026 · 1 hr 55 min · 20 segments
Today on Galway Talks with John Morley: *9am-10am* - Minister Robert Troy in Galway as New Law Removes Insurance Barriers for Cancer Survivors <!--THE END--> - Elderly Woman Waits Almost Two…
Robert TroyGuestDave McCarthyGuestPhilip ArnealGuestOllie TurnerGuestNiall O'SullivanGuest
Alan HarneyGuestDavid MartinGuestSarah KennyGuestJohn O'DonnellGuestFinbar PhilpottGuestNow imagine surviving cancer, getting your life back on track, and then discovering that your medical history could stand in the way of buying a home.
That's the issue at the heart of new legislation which aims to make it easier for cancer survivors to access mortgage protection insurance.
Under the new measures, people who have completed cancer treatment and been in remission for five years will benefit from what's known as the right to be forgotten.
meaning their previous diagnosis will no longer have to be taken into account in qualifying circumstances.
It's an issue that's deeply personal for Minister of State at the Department of Finance, Robert Troy, who has spoken about losing both his sister Mary and brother Matthew to cancer.
Minister Troy joins us now to discuss the new protections for cancer survivors, the impact of cancer on his own family, and today's visit to Galway.
I want to talk to you about the right to be forgotten legislation, Minister, which you are bringing forward.
Yesterday was a very significant day for cancer survivors because yesterday was the day that the people who have gone through what is a horrendous ordeal in terms of a cancer diagnosis, having received their treatment and having been cancer-free for a period of five years, can now legally get life cover for taking out a mortgage.
This was something that was on a voluntary code since 2023 but as a government we were determined to put it on a statutory basis and not only did we put it on a statutory basis but we enhanced the voluntary code and now we have brought the time to be cancer free back from seven years to five years and increased the life cover threshold from 500,000 to 650,000 in recognition to increasing house prices.
So, you know, heretofore, anybody who was a cancer survivor was really penalized.
They were left in a situation where even if they could get life cover, they were paying excess premiums, there were premiums over and above what the market rates were at the time and voluntary code came in that helped in a significant way but now as of yesterday anybody who is five years cancer free can avail of life cover when purchasing a house or building a house up to 650,000 and they will only be paying the prevailing market rates.
why not remove the five-year period altogether and perhaps, like has been done in other parts of insurance, put a levy on so that people who are even going through cancer can still get life cover?
Well, this isn't going to prevent people going and engaging with life providers or life insurance providers and they may well get cover at home.
What this is, is having negotiated and worked with the Irish Cancer Society, the insurance industry, the society of actuaries, oncologists, we wanted to ensure that we could bring forward a proposal that was workable, that we would recognise that a five-year period is a significant period and the likelihood of cancer reoccurring decreases dramatically.
But we also had to be conscious of, when looking at what time span we introduced, that we weren't going to have unintended consequences, i.e. that life cover for everybody else would increase to cover the risk involved with reducing the time frame.
So this is as a result of a lot of work and I want to acknowledge the role that the Irish Cancer Society played, indeed, officials in my own department, the Society of Actuaries, and advocates who came out and advocated that we make this change.
But this change is very welcome, it's very positive, it makes a real difference to cancer survivors, as I said, without having that unintended consequences of putting the cost of life cover up for everybody else.
So there was no appetite within government to reduce that period of time, even if it meant putting a levy on the broader society and the broader people looking for insurance?
No, well, we introduced a voluntary, the insurance industry introduced a voluntary code in 2023.
Now imagine surviving cancer, getting your life back on track, and then discovering that your medical history could stand in the way of buying a home.
That's the issue at the heart of new legislation which aims to make it easier for cancer survivors to access mortgage protection insurance.
Under the new measures, people who have completed cancer treatment and been in remission for five years will benefit from what's known as the right to be forgotten.
meaning their previous diagnosis will no longer have to be taken into account in qualifying circumstances.
It's an issue that's deeply personal for Minister of State at the Department of Finance, Robert Troy, who has spoken about losing both his sister Mary and brother Matthew to cancer.
Minister Troy joins us now to discuss the new protections for cancer survivors, the impact of cancer on his own family, and today's visit to Galway.
I want to talk to you about the right to be forgotten legislation, Minister, which you are bringing forward.
Yesterday was a very significant day for cancer survivors because yesterday was the day that the people who have gone through what is a horrendous ordeal in terms of a cancer diagnosis, having received their treatment and having been cancer-free for a period of five years, can now legally get life cover for taking out a mortgage.
This was something that was on a voluntary code since 2023 but as a government we were determined to put it on a statutory basis and not only did we put it on a statutory basis but we enhanced the voluntary code and now we have brought the time to be cancer free back from seven years to five years and increased the life cover threshold from 500,000 to 650,000 in recognition to increasing house prices.
So, you know, heretofore, anybody who was a cancer survivor was really penalized.
They were left in a situation where even if they could get life cover, they were paying excess premiums, there were premiums over and above what the market rates were at the time and voluntary code came in that helped in a significant way but now as of yesterday anybody who is five years cancer free can avail of life cover when purchasing a house or building a house up to 650,000 and they will only be paying the prevailing market rates.
why not remove the five-year period altogether and perhaps, like has been done in other parts of insurance, put a levy on so that people who are even going through cancer can still get life cover?
Well, this isn't going to prevent people going and engaging with life providers or life insurance providers and they may well get cover at home.
What this is, is having negotiated and worked with the Irish Cancer Society, the insurance industry, the society of actuaries, oncologists, we wanted to ensure that we could bring forward a proposal that was workable, that we would recognise that a five-year period is a significant period and the likelihood of cancer reoccurring decreases dramatically.
But we also had to be conscious of, when looking at what time span we introduced, that we weren't going to have unintended consequences, i.e. that life cover for everybody else would increase to cover the risk involved with reducing the time frame.
So this is as a result of a lot of work and I want to acknowledge the role that the Irish Cancer Society played, indeed, officials in my own department, the Society of Actuaries, and advocates who came out and advocated that we make this change.
But this change is very welcome, it's very positive, it makes a real difference to cancer survivors, as I said, without having that unintended consequences of putting the cost of life cover up for everybody else.
So there was no appetite within government to reduce that period of time, even if it meant putting a levy on the broader society and the broader people looking for insurance?
No, well, we introduced a voluntary, the insurance industry introduced a voluntary code in 2023.
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