Gerard Craughwell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Cathaoirleach for letting me in. There was a lot of talk towards the end of the previous Government about the massive number of 600 people who wanted to return to the Defence Forces. We now find that of the 600, 400 were deemed ineligible and, to date, only 11 have been called.Those 11 have not responded as of yesterday, as far as I am aware, as to whether they will take up the call. Let us be honest about it, the call was never about Covid-19. It was about trying to fill a gap due to the failure of retention policies. I know the Minister, Deputy Coveney, is in place and has taken a hands-on approach. I sincerely hope we will see a turnaround in the fortunes of the Defence Forces, given that we now know that two further ships - that is half of the entire naval fleet - will be tied up by the end of this year. They will not be able to patrol the seas, protect Ireland from people smuggling and drug running or protect the fisheries they are charged with responsibilities for. It is interesting to note that abatement was waived for people returning to the HSE but not for members of the Defence Forces, which means the whole thing was a scam in the first place. It was really a retention crisis they were trying to fix. I hope the Minister, Deputy Coveney, will do a much better job.

I would like to place on record my appreciation and, I am sure, this House's appreciation for the many hundreds of veterans around the country who have given up their time and personal resources to deliver meals on wheels and various other things to the public. They are under the radar and they are not high-profile people. I think this House, this Government and this country owes them a great debt of thanks.

I second Senator McDowell's amendment to the Order of Business and I will make one point on legislation. The running of legislation through the House with all Stages in one day or in one sitting is fundamentally wrong and debases this House. I know the Leader is under pressure to get urgent legislation through but I sincerely hope this practice stops as soon as we return in the autumn.