-----at which there is no veto. The Tánaiste has not answered the question of what mission he wants the Defence Forces to participate in that the triple lock has prevented. He has not given us an outline of what impact it would have on the reputation of Ireland and Irish troops were we to participate in a military mission that does not have UN approval. That has not been answered and I would hazard a guess that putting our troops and credibility on the line in the way the Tánaiste has outlined would be a very new a…

The Government would not dare put it to the people because it knows what the response would be.

What he has outlined today is a proposal in respect of fundamentally changing Irish foreign policy that he knows does not have the support of the people. If he is so clear-----

-----what he is doing is in the best interests of the people he should give a commitment today-----

-----he will put it to them. Finally, I will talk about the ongoing, slow shift we have seen. I have mentioned on a number of occasions that the shift can be seen very starkly in the response the Government has made in respect of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, a response we wholeheartedly supported at every single step.

We can compare that with the response to the Israeli actions in Gaza. I have put forward an amendment to the Government's amendment that simply adds two words on condemning the killing of children and civilians "by Israel" because the Tánaiste has not uttered the words that he condemns Israel. Why not?

No. The Tánaiste is the man----

-----who has made a career out of pointing-----

-----to the fact of whether people condemn or do not condemn. We unequivocally condemn Russia's invasion of Ukraine. We unequivocally condemn Hamas's actions on 7 October. We unequivocally condemn Israeli actions that have led to the deaths of thousands of innocent children. Will the Tánaiste do the same? It is a fair ask. It is "Yes" or "No". Will he condemn Israel?

You are on the mic-----

Do you condemn the actions of Israel?

Do you condemn the actions of Israel? "Yes" or "No".

The Tánaiste appears to want to answer every question apart from the one I am putting to him.

Hear, hear.

Hear, hear.

Will the Tánaiste outline his expectation for the number of members of the Defence Forces at the end of this year and the targets for each year up to 2028?

I acknowledge that there was already a recruitment and retention crisis within the Defence Forces when the Government came to office. The job of the Government was to address that by stemming the exodus of highly trained men and women from our Army, Naval Service and Air Corps and beginning to rebuild. We all accept this was a significant task, considering the underinvestment for the preceding decade. At that time, there was an establishment figure of approximately 9,500. The starting point when the Government took…

Does the Tánaiste accept he gave the same number this time last year?

I agree with the Tánaiste's final point. The Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces has outlined the procedures that are in place for joining the Defence Forces. They would make your head spin. I am sure the Tánaiste will acknowledge that he told the Dáil this time last year that the budget had provided funding for a net increase of 400 personnel within the Defence Forces in 2023. So far this year, there are 300 fewer people in the Defence Forces than there were last year. Does he accept that the work done over the p…

I am sure the Tánaiste will have had the same conversations with members of the Defence Forces representative organisations and their families in this regard. Reverting to our earlier conversation on the recruitment and retention crisis, every single one of them I have met has pinpointed that action on the working time directive as the single greatest move or action the Government could take to address that crisis. There appears, however, to be a frustratingly slow progression in its implementation. I hope the Tána…