Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

No. It is the overall issue. The average pension of all ranks combined is €19,100; it is €30,600 for retired officers and €16,000 for retired non-commissioned officers, NCOs, and privates. The average retirement gratuity, the lump sum, for all ranks combined is €52,000; it is €81,000 for officers newly retired on pension and €44,000 for NCOs and privates newly retired on pension. What I am saying is that there is a shortfall in the overall package and we want to make up that shortfall. We got additional moneys last year in the 2018 budget, amounting to €9.5 million, and I will be in negotiations with the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform for the next budget to make up the shortfall.

There have been pay increases for all members of the Defence Forces and both the Permanent Defence Force Other Ranks Representative Association, PDFORRA, and the Representative Association of Commissioned Officers, RACO, signed up to the extended Lansdowne Road agreement in the last number of months.

They will receive extra pay increases in the next short while.