Gerard Craughwell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I have spoken about the Defence Forces here on many occasions. It is becoming an international embarrassment now. Yesterday, the foreign affairs site foreignpolicy.compublished a statement to the effect that "Ireland is Europe's weakest link". The site outlined the current state of defence in this country and how defence has not featured. My colleague, Deputy Berry, and I frequently say Ireland does not do security.

This article brings into the public domain what has been said to me privately throughout Europe. Anywhere I travel, people ask me about the state of our security services and the undersea cables that come from the Unites States to Europe. Some 95% of all data travelling between these two continents, travels through Irish waters and we do not have a clue what is going on down there. There are Russian so-called scientific vessels sitting over cables and Russian fleets sailing in and out. It really is an international disgrace that we find ourselves in this situation. Nobody is listening to the representative bodies: the Army Ranger Wing is waiting for years for back-payment and a lieutenant instructor now earns less than a corporal who he overseas. That is just all wrong. There is something wrong and we really have to look at it.

I have also invited a number of veterans to this House over the past few days. I cannot understand how it has happened that we issued a medal in 2016 to the Defence Forces. A soldier who left after 40 years of service on 31 December 2015 was not entitled to the medal while a soldier who joined on 1 January 2016 was entitled to it. There are soldiers who joined and left within a few weeks who are selling the medal they got on eBay and wherever else. What a bloody insult that is to those who gave their lives to the defence of this country. We really owe them an awful lot more.

I ask the Leader to use her good offices and to put it to the Minister of Defence that we should have honoured those who served and issued them the 2016 medal. They deserved it. They gave their lives for this country and it is the very least we could do. I cannot begin to explain the level of hurt that is there over that medal. The bottom line on it is that I feel for them.

It is no secret I am as deaf as a doorknob. It is a terrible disability to have. You have no idea what it is like to be in company. I was in company recently with my wife and we were talking to some members of the French foreign legion. My wife pulled me aside and asked me if I had any idea what they were saying. I told her I had and she replied and told me I was answering questions they did not ask. There is nothing worse than being in company and not being able to understand what is being said about you.

I want to talk very briefly-----