O’Dea: Army deafness claims will be cleared within a year

Defence Minister Willie O'Dea has predicted that the State will deal with all army deafness claims within the next year.

Mr O'Dea said 92% of the 17,000 claims lodge by Irish soldiers had already been settled, at a cost to the state of €277m.

He said the overall liability would come to around €300m, which is significantly lower than the €1bn cost predicted at the outset of the cases.