Defence Forces
Dail Éireann — 2024-07-02
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Micheál Martin (FF), Cork South-Central

I too salute the courage of Natasha O'Brien in making very clear her position as a victim. I am conscious that the case has now been appealed by the Director of Public Prosecutions, DPP, so I cannot comment any further. Since I became Minister for Defence, I have focused on changing the culture in the Defence Forces. I mentioned earlier the external oversight body that has been established. There was a lot of resistance in the House to that when the legislation went through. It is now in the other House. I ask Deputies to reflect when they oppose a lot of measures. Believe me, the external oversight body is constructed on the advice of the independent review group as a key element of effecting culture change, along with a whole lot of other things we have done. Yet, I faced a lot of opposition, externally and in the House, to that measure. I agree with the Deputy that we need a fundamental change in culture.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2024-07-02/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:53:08+00:00
Sitting date: 2024-07-02