Brendan Ryan (Dublin Fingal, Labour) | Oireachtas source

It is time for the Defence Forces to be recognised in the industrial relations sphere in order that its members be protected from the working poverty that many currently experience. If the Garda Representative Association can be negotiated with, why can the same not be done with the Defence Forces representative associations? The Minister of State rightly said that there were difficult times in the past but as the economy improves we cannot let what happened before happen again. Sectors of society, including parts of the public sector, cannot be left behind. The Government cannot continue to preside over a body of personnel of whom up to 20% are in receipt of family income supplement. That is immoral. The Minister of State needs to get his hands around the issue and prioritise decent wages and conditions for the men and women of the Defence Forces.

The leader of the Labour Party, Deputy Howlin, last month called for a special review of the Defence Forces. The Minister of State referred to the general, across-the-board review but there is a need for a special review of the Defence Forces and I again call for that to be done. It is urgently required and there would be no opposition in the House to it but, rather, there would be agreement from all sides in view of the situation in respect of pay in the Defence Forces. All Members would support it and there would be no opposition from other public servants. I ask the Minister of State to acknowledge that he might consider or push for that.

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