Clare Daly (Dublin Fingal, Independent)
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1734. To ask the Taoiseach and Minister for Defence if his attention has been drawn to low morale in the Defence Forces and the reasons; and the steps taken to address the issues involved. [1780/17]

Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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As the Deputy may be aware, a report of relevance to the question asked was recently published. The Defence Forces Climate Survey was published in 2016, its purpose being to inform consideration of the ongoing human resource and strategic needs of the Defence Forces. The Survey was commissioned on foot of a recommendation contained in the third and most recent Report of the Independent Monitoring Group (IMG). A similar survey was conducted in 2008. In line with the 2008 Survey, approximately 11% of Defence Forces personnel were sampled on this occasion. The key findings of the Survey are grouped under topics such as Work Life Balance, Peer Support, Organisational Justice (within the Organisation), Procedural Justice, Organisational Fairness, Defence Forces Integrity and Supervisory Justice. I have reviewed the Report in detail and have also received a briefing from the University of Limerick (UL) researchers who undertook the project.

The Survey findings clearly point to challenges for the Defence Forces, particularly in the areas of leadership, communication, organisational culture, the working environment and active management of personal expectations. However, many positives emanated from the Survey, especially in relation to the commitment of personnel to the values and mission of the Organisation, high levels of work satisfaction, pride in the Organisation and positive views on culture and work support. Indeed, the UL researchers point out that the findings of the Report and the recommendations are interconnected and caution should apply to reading any one particular finding in isolation.

The responses to the issues raised in the Report of the Climate Survey will be led by the Chief of Staff by way of an Action Plan which involves the engagement of all levels of management within the Organisation. Both RACO and PDFORRA were briefed by the UL researchers on their findings and conclusions. Following that briefing, I met with the Representative Associations to hear their views and listen to their concerns in relation to the Report. It was agreed at the meeting that the Representative Associations would be fully engaged in the response to the Report and proposed Action Plan through the IMG framework, where they could put forward their views on appropriate responses.

Follow up work to the initial findings in the Survey is being conducted by the UL researchers via focus groups. This is with a view to establishing qualitative elements behind the quantitative findings of the Climate Survey. The Representative Associations were involved in the preparatory phase for the Focus Groups. The conduct of the Focus Groups is due to conclude by the end of January with further feedback from the Researchers scheduled to be delivered in Q2 2017.