Mick Barry (Cork North Central, Anti-Austerity Alliance) | Oireachtas source

Like the Garda representative organisations, PDFORRA and RACO have taken a case to the European Committee of Social Rights under Articles 4 and 6 of the European Social Charter seeking the same right of access to industrial relations machinery as other unions have, as well as the right to affiliate to the Irish Congress of Trade Unions.

The claim of the Garda organisations was upheld, despite resistance and opposition from the Government. Is the Government going to mount the same resistance to members of the armed forces and their representative organisations achieving the same civil rights?

As things stand, the armed forces now have the lowest level of legal protection and the poorest democratic rights of all workers. A number of High Court cases are pending on this. Will the Minister of State comment on the situation? I ask him, rather than simply explaining the status quo, to consider changing it immediately.

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