Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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It is the case that since 23 January 2020, the holder of the post of Director of Military Prosecutions (DMP) cannot be a member of a Representative Association. This point is set out in Defence Force Regulation (DFR) 02/2020, Section 4(1) and Section 6(2).

This draft Defence (Amendment) Bill will further include the post of the Military Judge (MJ), as both these posts are unique, within the Defence Forces, in that the post holders are independent in the performance of their functions, are not obliged to report to anyone in relation to their functions and the post holders are not in the chain of command. Equally, the DMP and MJ posts are for all members of the Defence Forces and as such they must be seen to be wholly independent, by all, in carrying out their specific duties.

Furthermore the posts of DMP and MJ are open to the public to apply and the terms and conditions for those posts are set out in legislation.

The ruling from the Adjudicator under the Conciliation and Arbitration (C&A) Scheme, for members of the permanent Defence Forces, is currently under appeal to the defence sector Arbitration Board. This appeal is part and parcel of the rights of all parties to the C&A Scheme.