Jack Chambers (Dublin West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

A very unusual thing happened in autumn of 2018. The Minister of State at the Department of Defence, Deputy Kehoe, informed the Dáil that the joint submission had been sent to the Public Service Pay Commission, which was between military management and the Department of Defence. We found out, in January of this year, that the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform had a central role in the aftermath of the apparent submission.

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What did the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform do around the changes made between military management and the Department of Defence? Why did it take three months for the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform to intervene in that process? In response to a parliamentary question the Minister said there was a collaborative basis between the management side parties to provide the commission with accurate and complete information. Is he saying there was inaccurate or incomplete information from military management and the Department of Defence? It appears that the Department is delaying on the issue of recruitment and retention and unusually intervening in a joint submission made by the civil and military sides in the Department of Defence. The Minister needs to clarify his Department's role in the matter. If he is playing a role in diluting the serious issues surrounding pay and conditions in order that he can uphold his top line on public pay, people working in the military will not place much hope in the report that will come from the Public Service Pay Commission. The Minister needs to clarify the matter.

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