Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Military discipline dictates different dynamics, so the officers and the military authorities have a greater responsibility for the protection of the health and safety of those under their command. It is interesting that the whistleblowers first came forward in November and December 2015. That suggests these issues were raised internally before that, which is the reason I asked when the military authorities were first made aware of the concerns of those who were handling carcinogenic chemicals. Does the Minister of State accept that a risk assessment should have been carried out immediately when this issue was first raised in November 2015 or before that? The work that is now starting should have started when the military authorities were aware of the Health and Safety Authority arriving to the aerodrome in February, or perhaps even in April or September. Instead of waiting until October when the report was produced, most of this work could have been half done or completed at this stage if they had acted.

Furthermore, is the Minister of State aware if other branches of the Defence Forces are now acting to consider risk assessments in respect of both chemicals and other dangerous equipment being handled by soldiers or Naval Service personnel to ensure there are no other areas in the Defence Forces which would raise similar health and safety concerns?

See this speech in context