Pat Buckley (Cork East, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I will speak to our amendment. I welcome the opportunity to speak to the motion and I send the apologies of Deputy Ó Snodaigh, who wanted to be here. Sinn Féin supports the thrust of the motion but our amendment seeks to strengthen it in some respects, in particular by requiring the Government to bring forward legislation to provide for the implementation of the working time directive within six months. Sinn Féin has also produced legislation that would give effect to collective bargaining rights for the members of the Defence Forces. We are also calling for the full implementation of the Dáil motion on Lariam, which called for Lariam to be prescribed as the anti-malarial drug as a last resort. A recent reply to a parliamentary question indicates that Lariam is still being prescribed to members of the Defence Forces in Mali as a matter of course.

As it stands, the Defence Forces have been locked out of public sector pay talks and are prohibited from taking industrial action by legislation. Their voices and concerns have been taken from them, which raises major concerns. I listened to the Minister of State's remarks and although he covered many topics, there was no mention of the welfare or well-being of our Defence Forces personnel or their families, particularly their partners.

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