Gerard Craughwell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I congratulate the Cathaoirleach and the Leader on their appointments. The changing of the guard seems to have been seamless, which is great. I will see what I can do to disrupt that as time goes on.My colleague was speaking about An Garda Síochána. It is finding it extremely difficult to recruit people, as are the Defence Forces. The problem is the 2013 pension. There is no incentive for anybody to join either An Garda Síochána or the Defence Forces, leaving aside the pay and conditions and the assaults that take place. There is no pension worth talking about at the end of their service. I would ask the Leader to organise a debate in this House on front-line workers and how they are not similar to every other public servant. We might organise that in the near future.

Rarely do people approach my house on the issue of what goes on in this House. Rarely do people speak to me about what goes on in this House. Anyone who follows my Twitter feed, and I know everyone in here does, will know that this weekend I was particularly preoccupied about what is going on in the Dáil today with the Minister, Deputy O'Donohoe. People ask me: "Have you guys nothing better to do than to pull each other's houses down?" We have attacks on the Minister to explain his electoral expenses and on Sinn Féin to explain its €7,000 in polling or whatever. People are sick to the back teeth of it. They do not want to hear it. Give the Standards in Public Life Commission, SIPO, the power it needs to do the job it needs to do and let us stop wasting Oireachtas time.

I am two and a half years talking about search and rescue services in this House. Recently, I got the accounts of the company that provides helicopter services. It claims that it lost €6 million over the last two years. Does anybody want to talk about that in this House? Not yet; nobody has risen to support me on that. The national children's hospital has gone way over budget. Does anybody want to talk about that? Not really, apart from the odd grand speech. We should be carrying out detailed oversight of what is going on. I know that the Cathaoirleach has supported me at the Joint Committee on Transport and Communications on the need for greater oversight and things like that. We need to start doing the job we are being paid to do. I would ask that people refrain from this petty squabbling that is taking place. It is unseemly for all of us. If there is something to be done then let us get it done and get it over with.

My good friend and colleague, Battalion Quartermaster Sergeant John O'Brien, and Orla Kettle are with us. BQMS O'Brien is from the 27th Infantry Battalion, which is the battalion in which Private Seán Rooney, who sadly lost his life in Lebanon, served. BQMS O'Brien was on duty that night. It is my great honour to have him here today. I would ask that we remember the risk our soldiers and our police force put themselves at on a daily basis.