Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I wish to raise the Public Service Pay Commission report on pay and recruitment issues for the Defence Forces. It is unfortunate that consideration of the matter has been postponed due to the absence of the Taoiseach. I do not propose to rehearse the issues at play but I note that the last time these matters were debated last month the leaking of proposals to the media in advance of consultation with the Permanent Defence Force Other Ranks Representative Association and the Representative Association of Commissioned Officers, the representative bodies of the Defence Forces, caused some angst. Judging by the coverage in the media again today, it seems the lessons have not been learned from that episode. Why have proposals again been leaked prior to consultation taking place with soldiers and their representative bodies? Will meaningful consultation with them take place as soon as possible directly and not through the media?

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