Gerard Craughwell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

It is no secret that I am on the other side of the triple lock debate. The triple lock is like having your children come to you to ask if you mind if they go on summer camp, and you say that you are sorry but they will have to go up the road and ask the neighbours, and if the neighbours say it is okay, then they can go. We are a sovereign state. We were a proud sovereign state until 2001, when the triple lock was introduced. The triple lock needs to go. I do not disagree with what Senator Clonan said with respect to building in safeguards so we do not finish up sending troops somewhere.

I would ask Members of this House and the Lower House to consider decisions that have been made since the start of the war in Ukraine. Does our Constitution mean anything? I would ask people to look at the decisions that have been made and then to look at Article 29.5.1° of our Constitution and ask themselves whether that particular section of the Constitution has been breached. We talk about neutrality all the time here. Neutrality is an irrelevancy unless there is a war and a country is faced with a war on its doorstep, at which time it would decide whether or not to be involved. If decides not to be involved, then it does not matter who kills who as one is not going to get involved. It is as simple as that. Article 29.5.1° places a grave onus on the Government when it is making decisions to have sight of the Constitution and what the Constitution says with respect to raising armies and supporting armies. I believe we need to do that and do it fairly urgently.

I have a question for the Leader. I mentioned the post-2013 pension in Galway yesterday, and the Leader would have heard that himself. There is a misconception that because it applies to the public service at large, it is not damaging the Defence Forces, the firefighters and An Garda Síochána, but it is. We need a debate with the Minister on that if the Leader could organise that.