Joe Costello (Dublin Central, Labour)

I thank the Minister for his reply. Members of the reserve are appreciative of the seven year bar and second bar medals, but I put it to the Minister that he is referring to a voluntary service provided for a long period. People who go about their ordinary business in their communities volunteer a great deal of their time and are not in receipt of remuneration for the time spent in training, on exercises or at meetings or for the service they provide. They are the country's second line of defence.

As the period in question is long and includes the FCA, we are speaking about tens of thousands of citizens who were prepared to give up their time loyally and patriotically to provide a service. Now that there is an integrated approach to the Permanent Defence Force and the reserve, the latter's members' status has been enhanced. An honorarium or ex gratia contribution made by the State would, alongside the medals, be an appropriate token of appreciation and recognition for service provided during an extended period. We are not discussing a large sum of money, but a relatively small sum. I ask the Minister to reconsider his decision.

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