Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister. This practice is grossly unfair and arbitrary. The fact that it has proceeded as it has for so long is unfortunate. The question that arises immediately is whether the courts erred in the first stage. To my mind, they could not have erred. Even though cases have been referred back to the courts on the basis of the situation, this issue prevails. It is totally outrageous that an award made by the courts is arbitrarily undermined, questioned and turned on its head by a decision, enabled by this Act, that part of the award made by the courts be recovered when the member of the Defence Forces is at a more vulnerable stage, that is, when in receipt of his or her military pension. I ask the Minister for a thorough investigation into this matter with a view to changing the situation.

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