Cathal Berry (Kildare South, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I am grateful for the opportunity to make some very brief comments on the tribunal being established. I also welcome the Defence Forces veterans to the Gallery. They are hugely welcome, as well they know.

I welcome the establishment of the tribunal. It cannot come soon enough as far as I am concerned. I note the comments from Deputy O'Callaghan on the terms of reference. The Tánaiste listed out all the stakeholders, there are lot of them there, and I recognise that it is hard to get unanimity in relation to the terms of reference. Are these terms of reference perfect? I would say not. Are they reasonable enough to begin the process, though? I would say, on balance, that they are. I also welcome the appointment of Ms Justice Ann Power, a highly impressive individual, both nationally and internationally. I wish her and her team well. I have two questions on logistics regarding the tribunal. I am not sure if the Tánaiste has the information to hand, but is there a potential or tentative launch date yet for the tribunal to begin? Has a premises or precise location been identified? If he could shed some light on that in his closing remarks, it would be greatly appreciated.

I want to double down on what Deputies Howlin and Lahart said in commending the vast majority of members of the Defence Forces on the performance of their duties and the exemplary fashion in which they perform them. There have been a few comments about Defence Forces culture and I want to address what the true Defence Forces culture is. The true Defence Forces culture was very evident in the take-down of the MV Matthewonly a few months back off the Cork coast, when we had operatives sliding down the fast rope, overpowering those on the vessel and basically executing the largest drugs bust ever in the history of the State. True Defence Forces culture was when an aircraft flew to Kabul two and a half years ago and those on board snatched our citizens and brought them back to safety. The true Defence Forces culture is the almost 500 troops in the Middle East at the moment, in harm's way, keeping a lid on a potentially catastrophic regional conflict. That is what the true Defence Forces culture is. What is being discussed in this Chamber and what will be discussed in the tribunal is that there are a number of individuals who are not aligned to the Defence Forces culture and do not abide by it. They think that the Defence Forces culture is not relevant to them. That is the key issue. My phone has been inundated, as people can well imagine, in recent months with messages from many people who serve this country so proudly currently and who did so in the past. They feel that the report that was written is not reflective of the true organisation they served in.

I welcome the establishment of the tribunal. I wish Ms Justice Ann Power the very best and look forward to reading her report. It is officially due in about three years' time. If we get it earlier, then all the better. The focus of this tribunal should be on the victims and ensuring that this never happens again.

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