John Brady (Wicklow, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Members of the retained service and their family members came to Dublin today and marched on the Dáil. Some have sat outside for the duration of this debate. They came here out of frustration looking for hope and respect, but all they got from the Government benches were words. They received no hope from the Government benches and little respect. Instead, they got a classic case of kicking the can down the road. That is what has been done with the Government's amendment. This motion was penned by the members of the retained service themselves because they feel their voices have not been listened to by anyone in government. The Government's amendment nullifies and totally dismisses everything they have said. It essentially says that the Government is great and that everything will be done to resolve the issue, but it contains no definitive timelines. I have heard it said repeatedly that the Minister will bring forward the review and the recommendations in December, but no date whatsoever has been given. Bear in mind that the Minister has been sitting on the review and recommendations since February or March. That in itself gives a clear indication of how seriously the Government is dealing with the crisis in the retained service.

There was not one mention by the Minister of State or his colleague of the balloting for industrial action. Members of the retained fire service felt that they had no other option, given that the processes they had engaged in up to that point had not produced meaningful solutions to the crisis. They served notice on the chief executives of all the local authorities a number of weeks ago. The balloting is taking place as we speak. In some areas, 97% of retained firefighters are saying that they have no other option and that, although they do not want to go down this route, they have to because their voices are not being heard. As a last resort, they are prepared to take industrial or full strike action. They have no faith in the Government to follow through and implement the report.

The motion could complement the process, which was not initiated recently. Firefighters were asked for their input into the review last year. Nine hundred of them took part. However, all it was was words. No action has come from it. What the firefighters are asking for is the creation of a cross-party Oireachtas committee to get under the bonnet of the retained service, examine all of the issues over a four-month period and make recommendations.

That could and should complement whatever review is being undertaken. More importantly, it will give a level of accountability and responsibility to the Government to implement and follow through on whatever comes out of that. I have my own views, and the firefighters have their own views, around the working time directive, which needs to be fully implemented. That would go a long way to addressing all of the concerns we have heard from right across the Chamber here this evening. Unfortunately, all we have got from the Government is words.

I will refer to one line in the countermotion. Members of the service were sitting up in the Gallery and I do not know if the Minister of State, Deputy Peter Burke, noticed, but the vast majority of them actually got up and walked out after the Minister of State spoke. Their morale was on the ground as they came in here, and that just sunk it even further. The countermotion states:

... while the recruitment and retention issues are serious, it is important nevertheless to place these issues in the context of a service that has repeatedly been shown to be operationally ready and resilient ...

It then goes on to refer to Covid. To my mind, the Minister is conscious of the serious challenges but is happy because he knows the guys are going to get up, get out and respond as they always do despite the major challenges and despite the shortage of personnel on the ground. I again appeal to the Minister of State to pull the amendment, to support the motion, and to show full support for the retained firefighters and the communities in which they serve. I ask the Minister of State to pull the amendment and support the motion. Let us get this committee going and start putting in place a service that is fit for purpose.

See this speech in context