Neutrality and Triple Lock: Motion [Private Members]
Dail Éireann — 2026-09-16
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Rose Conway-Walsh (SF), Mayo

I too want to condemn the attack on Michael Healy-Rae, say how appalled I am about it and send my good wishes to him for a good recovery and to his family.
Mar Chathaoirleach ar an gComhchoiste um Chosaint agus Slándáil Náisiúnta, tá an-áthas orm inniu labhairt faoin nglas triarach. The Government needs to be honest with the Irish people about the triple lock. Its amendment to our motion states that the triple lock is not a determination or expression of neutrality. However, it is a safeguard and it underpins promises made to the Irish people during the second Nice and Lisbon referendums that Ireland would remain militarily neutral. Removing that safeguard raises fundamental questions about the future of our neutrality. If the Minister wants to persist with efforts to dismantle the triple lock, she needs to put it to the people in a referendum.
I commend the brave men and women of our Defence Forces, particularly those who have served as peacekeepers in some of the world's most volatile regions. As Chair of the defence and national security committee, I visited the Curragh last week. I sincerely thank the personnel there who showed me around. I saw the consequences of decades of underinvestment by successive Governments. We finally and rightly are investing in military procurement but our barracks are still crumbling. Is it any wonder recruitment and retention remain such serious challenges? This is where the Government's focus should be regarding defence.
Military neutrality does not mean military weakness. A neutral country needs credible, properly resourced defence forces and the triple lock is not a barrier to any of this. It is also not a blanket ban on overseas activity. It does not prevent our personnel travelling abroad to participate in military training, undertaking humanitarian missions, responding to disasters or emergencies or taking part in official ceremonies overseas. Neutrality is part of our national identity. It has served us well as an independent State. I believe the overwhelming majority of people want it to be protected. Instead of dismantling a safeguard of our neutrality, give people their say. Have a referendum.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-09-16/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-09-28T05:50:48+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-09-16