Defence Forces
Dail Éireann — 2026-06-09
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Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (SF), Cork South-Central

I have said before that sometimes I get a bit worried in that while I am not against local bargaining per se , it worries me when the holy world and all is going to be fixed through local bargaining. It comes up time and again that it will fix this, that and the other. Ultimately, it comes down to 1% of the payroll in an individual pay deal. I believe what cadets want to hear is that the Minister is committed to doing this and that she will address this. The Minister has said that she will try to progress it but we need to see a clearer commitment in that regard.
In the time I have left I will briefly raise another issue on the welfare of Defence Forces personnel in the context of the tribunal process. The Women of Honour group has raised the issue of the absence of interim funding for representation. This will constrain them considerably in their ability to participate in the tribunal particularly given that the State obviously is well funded with resources for its representation. The Minister might consider that also.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-06-09/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-09-14T01:01:05+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-06-09