Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

On pay, I am being asked to ensure the representative bodies within the Defence Forces can have associate membership with ICTU, that is, to ensure that pay within the Defence Forces will be consistent with public sector pay policy. At the same time, I am being asked by the very same people to increase pay in the Defence Forces as though it was not a public sector pay policy issue at all. Let us have some consistency and honesty here. My view is that we need to address pay and conditions and allowances issues. We need to try to use allowances, in particular, strategically within the Defence Forces to maximise take-home pay, incentivise recruitment and retention and reward the extraordinary service in uniform to which people choose to commit by joining the Defence Forces. Nevertheless, we also have to be honest in the context of the broader considerations regarding public sector pay negotiations and to recognise I do not make decisions on pay. I can make recommendations, but it will be the Government generally, on the advice of the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, that will make decisions on public sector pay policy, and we are about to head into a discussion and negotiation process regarding public sector pay.

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