Denis O'Donovan (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

First, I acknowledge the fact that in recent years there has been huge spending on infrastructure and equipment. Everyone across the board wants to acknowledge that. However, the €5,000 retainer fee is derisory. I know a young fellow who was looking for a loan. The credit union does not take into account the call out-fee which, as my colleague said, works out at approximately 99 cent per hour. The pension for firefighters is also derisory. Many employers do not want to take firefighters on in a full-time job because it is a nuisance. They will be called out in the middle of a job or task and must rush out immediately to the fire station. It is also not conducive to female firefighters which is indicated by the small number of female firefighters across the country. The time and demands on their lives are impossible to meet. In many instances they are first responders. I can give an example. When I had a major seizure on 27 October in Rathfarnham, the first people who came to my rescue were members of the fire brigade from Rathfarnham. They probably saved my life.

Why spend approximately €60,000 on training and recruiting new officers when some will be gone in three or four years. We spend €60,000 on bringing them up to the standard required and then they leave because they cannot cope with the hours and difficulties they face as firefighters. Firefighters in rural Ireland, in Castletownbere, Bantry, Skibbereen, Schull, Dunmanway or Clonakilty, cannot live on the wage, so they must have another job. That is the reality. I am aware that the unions worked out a deal that will expire next year and the Minister, Deputy O'Brien, said they are caught in that. I accept that, but now is the time to plan for next year and to give a commitment to firefighters across the board that they will get better conditions, better pay - the pay is derisory - a better pension and a better way of life. To conclude, these men and women have to go out to deal with emergencies, including suicides. I know of an incident where a man had to be extracted from a slurry tank having fallen in. Firefighters emptied the slurry tank. They do all those kinds of difficult jobs that are hard to deal with. Will the Minister of State seriously look at the situation? I hope he will give us some hope before we leave here today.