Paddy Burke (Fine Gael)

I welcome the Minister to the House and congratulate him on his elevation to ministerial rank. I wish him well and I have no doubt he will do an excellent job as Minister for Defence.

At the outset, I broadly welcome the Bill, the provisions of which are important. One criticism I have is the long delay in getting the legislation through the House. It will soon be three years since the Bill was first published. It should now be progressed with all due speed.

The Defence Forces personnel, on whom we all rely, should have the protection of a dedicated ombudsman without any further excessive delay. The debate this afternoon is timely. At the opening of the annual conference of the association representing Army, Air Corps and the Naval Service personnel, PDFORRA, it was claimed that Defence Forces personnel are being coerced into serving on overseas missions. Speaking at the event, the association's vice-president claimed this was a move away from the principle that volunteers would be considered for service first before others are requested to serve on certain missions.

In line with these concerns, it is right and proper that we should consider the working conditions of our Defence Forces personnel. We cannot expect our enlisted personnel to serve under regulations, conditions and codes of discipline drawn up in another time and age, when the emphasis on fair and decent working conditions was not as stringent as it is today. These days we properly place a high value on human rights and fair employment regulations. The employment conditions governing our Defence Forces must be subject to these high standards and must adapt to modern requirements and acceptable codes of practice.

When appointed, the ombudsman for the Defence Forces will fulfil a crucially important role. The legislation clearly states that the ombudsman shall be independent in the performance of his or her functions and may investigate any action that is the subject of a complaint made by the person affected by the action. In clearer terms, this should allow the ombudsman to investigate any form of bullying, abuse or bad treatment meted out to a member of the Defence Forces. The function of the ombudsman is, therefore, of great importance to Defence Forces personnel. We should not forget the findings of the 2002 Doyle report which examined harassment, discrimination, bullying and sexual harassment in the Defence Forces. Some 20% to 30% of soldiers surveyed experienced difficulty in each of these categories, which is unacceptable. Soon after the publication of this report, the then Minister for Defence stated:

I would like the message to be loud and clear that the practices identified in the Doyle report should have no place in today's Defence Forces. They are contrary to the best interests of the men and women who are the Defence Forces and to the organisation as a whole.

I wholeheartedly agree, but I must say that for a Government which claims to have the best interests of Defence Forces personnel at heart, the delay in progressing this legislation is to be deeply regretted.

Members of the Defence Forces must be able to bring their concerns and grievances to an independent forum such as an ombudsman. The Doyle report also revealed that 75% of those surveyed believed they could get away with bullying in the Defence Forces. An independent ombudsman would be very effective in dealing with these serious problems. If an ombudsman for the Defence Forces is not created, these trends may continue and create further serious difficulties. The State has both a legal and moral responsibility to provide members of the Defence Forces with a working environment that is safe and meets 21st century standards. Therefore, allowing unacceptable types of behaviour within the Defence Forces to go unchecked is not an option. Every person has the right to work and serve their country without having the appalling spectre of abuse or harassment hanging over him or her. Such people must have access to a fair and impartial office that can offer them assistance in the resolution of their grievances. To allow this type of behaviour to continue would have a dreadful effect on morale in the Defence Forces. We cannot expect our personnel to serve with the type of courage and excellence they have displayed time and time again unless their morale and confidence in the forces is maintained.

Given the vital role the Defence Forces play in our society, their members operate under some unique working conditions. Their own representative bodies have the right to negotiate remuneration, working conditions and similar matters. However, they cannot recommend to their members that they should adopt strike action in the event of a serious grievance with the Government. Given the importance of the Defence Forces, this is an understandable restriction, but it also means that we must put in place different procedures that will protect the members from abuse. The appointment of an ombudsman to the Defence Forces will be an important step in this direction.

I have some concerns about the specific provisions of the legislation in certain areas. For example, the Bill as drafted gives the Government considerable sway over the ombudsman, including setting the length of his or her term. For some reason, the Government in this legislation has seen fit to depart from the provisions applied in the Ombudsman for Children Act 2002. As with the Defence Forces ombudsman, the President appoints the Ombudsman for Children. However, a major difference between the provisions of this legislation and those establishing the previous three ombudsmen lies in the age of retirement. In the previous three Bills, the age of retirement is set at 67 years of age, whereas in this Bill the Minister for Defence may set it.

Furthermore, in the Ombudsman (Defence Forces) Bill, the Government will have the power to dictate for how long an ombudsman may serve, and there is no restriction on a person serving for longer than two terms. This is a departure from the previous legislation and Fine Gael will table amendments at the appropriate time. Similarly, I have concerns that the ombudsman should not only have the authority to investigate matters referred to him or her, but should also have the power to instigate an investigation of his or her own volition. This power is essential to the independence and effectiveness of any ombudsman of this kind.

We should compare what is being proposed in this legislation with the type of procedures that exist in other countries. For example, the ombudsman for the Canadian defence forces can hear complaints from a much larger range of people than the proposed Irish Defence Forces ombudsman. In matters relating to the Canadian forces, those eligible to file complaints with the Canadian ombudsman include current and former cadets, members of the Canadian forces, employees, applicants to the Canadian forces and family members of any of the preceding. The legislation we are debating today could benefit from the lead taken by the Canadian ombudsman by expanding the range of those eligible to file complaints. Currently, the Bill places strict limits on who can file complaints. Expanding this right to other people related to the Defence Forces, whether cadets, families or members of the Defence Forces, would help guarantee that the rights of these groups are protected.

Taking action against bullying or harassment in any working environment is very important. However, with the codes of discipline and chains of command that are commonplace in any modern defence force, highlighting bullying or harassment can become even more difficult. Currently, there is a clear perception that when it comes to the defence forces, both here and abroad, it is difficult to have a personal grievance investigated objectively. For a person with a grievance, it takes considerable courage to bring it to the attention of higher ranking officers. This results in many grievances and complaints being buried and overlooked.

The role of the Defence Forces is critical to the functioning of the State. Members of the forces have served with courage and considerable honour with the United Nations. They serve today on one of their most challenging deployments yet, in Liberia. Our Defence Forces personnel deserve the protection of an independent, dedicated ombudsman and I hope this legislation will progress through the House without further delay.