Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputies for their questions. Regarding the implementation of the recommendations of the Commission on the Defence Forces, the high-level action plan sets out the initial implementation and oversight structures. The high-level steering board is chaired by the Secretary General of the Department of the Taoiseach, and that oversees delivery. The implementation oversight group has been established to monitor the implementation of the recommendations approved by the Government. The group, chaired by Ms Julie Sinnamon, has met four times to date. The most recent meeting was held on 27 February 2023. Some recommendations are considered priority and these are the ones which will be implemented first. A civil-military implementation management office has been established, initially focusing on the 38 early actions set out in the high-level action plan, and the production of an implementation plan. Work is at an advanced stage on the implementation of these 38 early priority actions, including the development of an implementation plan. The implementation plan will clearly set out the work that is to be progressed this year and indeed beyond.

In regard to the issue of the report on the "Women of Honour", a judge-led review was established by the then Minister for Defence, Deputy Coveney, following Government approval. It has examined those very systems, policies and procedures for dealing with issues relating to bullying, discrimination, harassment, sexual harassment and sexual misconduct in the Defence Forces, as well as the prevailing workforce culture. I am fully confident that this review has been a necessary and critical first step to address the need for a safe work environment for serving members, with zero tolerance for such unacceptable behaviour. The chair of the independent review group, Ms Justice Bronagh O'Hanlon, submitted the final report to the Minister for Defence on 2 February. He is now considering the report in full in consultation with the Attorney General. Thereafter he will bring the report to the Government for consideration and assessment, with subsequent publication thereafter. There is a process to be followed but there will not be any undue delay in this regard. I do not intend to pre-empt any of the recommendations in the report but I reiterate that the terms of reference of the review are wide ranging and provide that the Government may consider further work on receipt of an independent review, including with regard to matters of an historical nature and how these might be best pursued and further inquired into.

With regard to steps we are taking to address recruitment and retention issues in the Defence Forces, I acknowledge that we have a severe problem with recruitment and retention but this is not in any way unique to the Defence Forces or, indeed, unique to Ireland. Recruitment and retention are major challenges across all sectors of our economy, public sector and private sector, low-paid jobs and high-paid jobs. In many ways that is a feature of the fact that we are now close to full employment with more people working in Ireland than ever before, youth unemployment close to an all-time low and female workforce participation close to an all-time high. We need to be mindful of that context. When we approach full employment, we will see recruitment and retention difficulties throughout the public and private sectors, not just in areas where there was traditionally a problem. The world of work has changed. People are less likely to commit to a job for life, or a career for life, in the way they did in the past. That is I believe a good thing, by the way. Resignation rates from organisations in both the public and private sectors of 4% to 5% are now quite normal and 1% is low.

On the Defence Forces specifically, we have approved a move to increase the capability of the Defence Forces by an additional 2,000 personnel, beyond the current establishment figure of 9,500. The immediate focus is on stabilising the staffing situation and bringing the strength up to 11,500 by 2028, including a civilian component. There is ongoing general service and direct entry recruitment. A separate recruitment competition has been launched specifically for the Air Corps. Direct entry competitions are ongoing as are the re-entry schemes for former members of the Defence Forces. The Be More recruitment campaign launched last year highlights the career opportunities available in the Defence Forces, and the wider benefits of membership. Measures being implemented include service commitment schemes in the Air Corps and the Naval Service and a seagoing naval personal tax credit. Pay has improved as a result of increases arising from the Public Service Pay Commission report, recent pay agreements and the early implementation of some of the recommendations of the Commission on the Defence Forces. Two of these recommendations, namely, personnel of 3-star private able seaman rank being paid the full military service allowance applicable to the rank and the removal of the requirement that the cohort mark time for the first three years at that rank, have had a substantial impact on starting pay rates in the Defence Forces, which now compare more favourably with starting pay rates across the public service. There is scope for further income as well from duty allowances. From today, pay rates, including the military service allowance for the ranks of 3-star private or able seaman in the first three years of service will have a starting salary of more than €37,000 rising to €38,500 in year 2 and just less than €40,000 in year 3.

Finally, Deputy Barry’s question is a fair question but probably not best dealt with in this type of format. The Civil War happened 100 years ago. Atrocities were committed on both sides, as he said, by the national army and also by the irregulars. Those atrocities were wrong and I acknowledge that but there is an appropriate place for us to deal with that and it is not at Taoiseach’s Questions on a random Wednesday afternoon.

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