Gerard Craughwell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I will get to them as quickly as I can. I thank the Minister of State and his officials for attending. The Chief of Staff going on national television to say pay and conditions were his primary concern, and then that he wanted to attend meetings of the pay commission himself, does not suggest there is any unanimous agreement on the pay and conditions of soldiers. It is a most unprecedented step for any Chief of Staff to seek the right to address a commission when the Department has already put in its submission.

With respect to the pay commission, the terms of reference clearly allow for recommendations and initiatives to be taken into account. I would like Minister of State to explain whether the recommendations laid out by the Defence Forces have been submitted to the pay commission. I understand the commission will meet on 23 October and determine the date on which it will provide its report. I would like the Minister of State to explain how he knows this will be provided in quarter one of 2019 given that the commission has not yet met.

Does the Minister of State accept that he cannot recruit his way out of trouble? He is in serious trouble, with an establishment of 8,800 as opposed to the 9,500 who should be there. I understand somewhere between 50% and 60% of those applying to join the Defence Forces never get past stage one of the recruitment process, and that the overall number is less than 10%.

With respect to retention, which I have raised with the Minister of State in the Seanad several times, there is still no retention policy published by the Department. The White Paper of 2015 needs to be revised. When will we see that revision?

With respect to the Air Corps, we are buying new CASAs and we do not have pilots. Is the Minister of State proud of the current circumstances in the Air Corps? We do not have pilots or air traffic control personnel. We have contracted out the air ambulance service over the next couple of years, at a cost of €7 million. We are paying on the double. I have asked before how ready we are to deal with a terrorist event that might arise in the west or south west of Ireland. How quickly could we get a ranger group down to a hijacked bus of American tourists in Dingle? The Minister of State knows the impact this would have on foreign direct investment.

With regard to services, is the Minister of State able to provide the number of patrol days of the Naval Service? Will he outline the percentages in regard to those being recruited by comparison with those leaving? With respect to governance, command and control are falling apart in the system. As of today, the 6th Infantry Battalion has five officers out of 25. Not so long ago, the 27th Infantry Battalion had three captains and one lieutenant running a battalion. That is totally and utterly unacceptable. Officers are moved around the country at short notice. What does that say about the Defence Forces' policy with respect to family-friendliness?

The one thing on which I will compliment the Minister of State is the treatment of the Jadotville heroes. He pulled out all the stops and did a good job. With respect to Jadotville, however, we were told there were no recommendations for medals and, if there were, they were nowhere to be found. I have to hand a recommendation for five military medals for gallantry and 31 recommendations for the distinguished service medal. I understand that, in respect of the entire period of the Congo mission, 196 recommendations were made for the distinguished service medal. I understand that is not a function of the Minister of State's Department but of the military. Will the Minister of State order a review of all recommendations for distinguished service medals and military medals for gallantry? We should not be mean about medals. We should be able to issue them to people who were recommended for them. It is a terrible indictment of this country that we see generals getting distinguished service medals. I have a list of those recommended for distinguished service medals and it includes approximately 20 privates, ten corporals, four sergeants, one company sergeant, three lieutenants and a captain. A corporal, private, two sergeants and a company sergeant have been recommended for the military medal for gallantry. One of those, Sergeant Walter Hegarty, the father-in-law of my niece, died not knowing that he had two recommendations for distinguished service medals, one of which he was awarded, and a recommendation for the military medal for gallantry. It is simply not good enough. Flattery we do; respect we do not do. I thank the Minister of State. I am sorry there was a lot there but I had to get it out.