Ruairi Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I will take the positives from what the Minister said. There was acceptance the model for retained firefighters is not working and that the issues with pay, conditions, rostering and the fact the job is not attractive must be dealt with. That is why the firefighters are watching proceedings from the Gallery at the moment. It is the reason a huge amount of them made the journey to Dublin. We all realise we are talking about local authorities across this State that are under severe pressure when it comes to being able to put a full quotient of firefighters into operation. In many cases local authorities cannot put forward a full complement. That means we are dealing with firefighters who are under severe pressure.

The Minister spoke, as Deputy Mac Lochlainn did, about what firefighters did in Creeslough. I am aware of what they do. The last time I went to visit a scene was close to my house in Dundalk, where firefighters bravely fought the flames at a waste plant and brought the fire under control. Councillor Antóin Watters and I spent a considerable amount of time with firefighters fighting blazes on the Cooley Mountains. We all realise the absolutely necessary work that needs to be done. People have talked about six 24-hour shifts, 144 hours per week, split by two days and then another six days of the same. That is just not doable in any way, shape or form.

Whether the Minister agrees with our motion and is going to follow through with the review process we are talking about or whether he is talking about an alternative, we know for certain we have a system that is ready to fail. In County Louth, Deputy Munster and Councillor Joanna Byrne have been to the forefront in talking about the huge difficulties in Drogheda. From speaking to retained firefighters from Carlingford to Drogheda, we know we do not have a system that is working and fit for purpose. We need action to happen as soon as possible. We do not particularly care how the Minister does it but he must make it happen as soon as possible.

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