Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I am glad the Deputy and others have raised this matter, which shows the importance of the retained fire services. I commissioned the review to which the Deputy referred and the Government has accepted its 13 recommendations. We have been working with all stakeholders to move the process forward. We are very close to achieving that. The best place for any of the outstanding issues to be resolved is within the existing infrastructure of the State. I ask the retained fire service representatives to take that on board. As is their right, they have served notice of industrial action. I do not want to escalate the matter any further. Suffice it to say that I, as Minister, want this resolved. We have come a long way on pay, conditions and rostering. In fairness, the union representatives recognise that too. There are some outstanding issues that can and, I hope, will be resolved.

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