Maurice Cummins (Fine Gael)

I welcome the Minister. The Defence Forces have undergone major changes in recent years and the manner of this reform has received favourable comments from the Minister and his predecessors. Numbers have fallen significantly and a spate of barracks closures has caused great inconvenience and hardship to families and communities. Some members now have to travel in excess of 80 miles owing to these closures but they have taken this inconvenience and added financial pressure on the chin.

Given that members of the Defence Forces have taken such strong medicine over recent years, surely they should be spared from any additional cuts. They cannot be expected to take any more pain, especially when many of them are on relatively low wages. The fact that hundreds of personnel qualify for family income supplement is evidence of the low wages they receive. The Minister should be fighting to protect their standards of living, which cannot be described as extravagant.

The Minister's threats against PDFORRA when he had a firm undertaking from it that it would not be part of the Frontline Alliance was reprehensible. He should be fighting its members' corner and praising them for their continued loyalty and bravery in defending this country and on peacekeeping missions abroad. These men and women deserve great praise and support and threatening their representative association is no way to treat them.

The Defence (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2009 envisages that Permanent Defence Force personnel will work abroad to develop enhanced capability with other co-operating states through permanent structured co-operation, PSC. Will the Minister explain how this co-operation will operate? Will he confirm that members of the Permanent Defence Force who joined before the enactment of the legislation will not be liable to be sent abroad on PSC work unless they volunteer to do so? This is a matter of concern to the membership of the Permanent Defence Force.

In general, I welcome the Bill. It will, for example, ensure members of the Defence Forces have access to modern equipment. We do not have anything to fear from the European Defence Agency which provides assurance that European soldiers participating in peace support operations will have modern, safe equipment. This is of paramount importance to our soldiers.

Participation in the European Defence Agency is entirely voluntary. Under the legislation, any proposed participation will be brought to the Dáil and, I hope, the Seanad for approval. I hope a Fine Gael Party amendment requiring Seanad approval for any proposal for Irish participation in other European Defence Agency programmes will be passed on Committee Stage. Participation in the European Defence Agency will deliver advantages for Ireland given that the pooling of military resources will result in economies of scale for all countries involved.

Ireland has made a valuable and significant contribution to peacekeeping throughout the world. It is important that everything possible is done to ensure the safety of our troops abroad who operate in dangerous and volatile circumstances. I pay tribute, in particular, to our forces in Chad who are doing an excellent job in difficult conditions. I commend the Minister on bringing the Bill before the House with such speed. The Fine Gael Party fully supports the concept of the legislation and hopes the Minister will accept our amendments, especially the proposal providing for a role for the Seanad.