We have Defence Forces officers in headquarters in respect of the ongoing EU-led operation in the Mediterranean. Unfortunately, we do not have the capacity to send a ship abroad right now, either on a humanitarian mission for a sustained period or to be part of EU operations in the Mediterranean. That is because we have had recruitment and retention issues in the Naval Service, which Members will be aware of because I have talked on the record about it many times. We need to address those issues and we are setting …

The next question will deal with this issue in more detail. As I said earlier, however, we are taking this issue seriously. I want to acknowledge the courage of the women in the Women of Honour group, and the many women currently serving in the Defence Forces, who came forward and spoke with me in the way they did in the context of their experiences. I want to give reassurance to those women that, one, I believe them, and, two, we are going to act with them to ensure that we set up a comprehensive and independent r…

I propose to take Questions Nos. 92, 94, 95, 108, 112, 130, 131, 137 and 142 together. As the Deputy will be aware, a number of other Deputies have submitted questions on this important matter, to which I have responded.  In that respect, the House will be aware of the actions being taken to establish an independent review, which will be undertaken by external, independent and unbiased experts.  The review will examine the effectiveness of current policies and procedures dealing with workplace issues, such as digni…

I can assure Deputies that appropriate action will be taken on the on the foot of recommendations from a review that needs to be independent and comprehensive. I am committed to making sure that happens. I am committed to ensuring the women who have been brave enough to come forward are part of the process of setting up that review mechanism to make sure everybody has full confidence in it. That is what we are trying to do. Dr. Tom Clonan made a valuable contribution more than 20 years ago in his doctoral thesis. A…

-----to try to deal effectively with bullying and harassment in the Defence Forces. Clearly, that has not resulted-----

-----in the kind of change that is needed. That is why this fundamental review is now needed to make sure we get it right this time.

For the record, I am not making any assumption in my statements today. If people took that from what I said earlier, I say that I am not prejudging any outcomes from an independent review. That will be a matter for a robust and independent process that involves skilled and experienced people. They will make their judgments and they will make their recommendations. We will deal with the truth of that. I just want to say that. On Deputy Connolly's questions, we have not yet agreed a timeline. We have not even finalis…

I propose to take Questions Nos. 93 and 103 together. I thank the Deputy for the questions, which are linked to Deputy Connolly’s question, and this gives me a bit of time to answer it. In accordance with the terms of section 22 of the Protected Disclosure Act 2014, an annual report on the total number of protected disclosures made in the preceding year is prepared and published on the Department's website. This report is required to be prepared and published not later than 30 June in each year in relation to the i…

I am somewhat limited in what I say, because if I comment on the content of any protected disclosure I have received, I am at risk of identifying somebody or of breaking the law, and I obviously do not want to do that. All I can say is we have a system in the Department to deal with protected disclosures. Our Secretary General takes that very seriously. We act on protected disclosures as we deem necessary and appropriate in a way that is consistent with our legal obligations. There is an absolute obligation on us t…

From my experience, when people join the Defence Forces, they are loyal to the Defence Forces and to the country. That is why they serve their country. Part of their training is to reinforce that loyalty to the system they are part of, which involves a command structure that is very different from any other form of employment. For someone to go against that means he or she is effectively going against the grain. This week I met serving members of the Defence Forces as well as the women of honour, and it takes a lot…

I am happy to come back in when we have more time. This is a report I am sure the Deputy read over the summer because she has spoken about it on more than one occasion. The battle of Jadotville occurred 60 years ago this month. This significant event in military history occurred during the Irish peacekeeping mission in the Congo. The issue of awarding military medals to personnel who served at Jadotville has been considered on a number of occasions and, most recently, an independent review group, IRG, was establish…

I am not.

I will be brief. There is much interest in this issue. A judicial review is also under way in respect of challenging the report, and it is difficult for me to comment in too much detail until that judicial review has been settled and we get a clear outcome. We are, however, committed to implementing the recommendations in the report. To be honest, some elements in the report take away from it. I refer to commentary concerning public representatives and what they have said and done on campaigns etc. It was unhelpful…

I am sharing time with the Minister of State, Deputy Brophy. It is several weeks now since the Taliban captured Kabul and the attention of the world was drawn to Afghanistan. Although the gaze of the media has shifted somewhat since the middle of August when we were all shocked by the scenes of panic and chaos at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, there is no doubt that the crisis still continues. It continues for Afghans displaced by conflict and violence, Afghan women and girls, those who depend on huma…

That is not the reason.

I thank the Deputies for contributing to the debate. It has been quite an extensive debate over three hours or so and has been very useful. I will try to respond to the questions and comments. Some of the questions apply to programmes that will be outlined and administered by other Ministers, but I will try to respond to the thrust of the questions. Perhaps I will break my response up into different issues that have been raised. The first is our response to assist Irish citizens in Afghanistan and help get them out…

I thank the Cathaoirleach. Before I address the legislation before us this evening, perhaps the House will allow me to say that I met with some very brave women today. I had the privilege of meeting the group that is now referred to as the "Women of Honour" and also a group of serving women of various ranks from the Army, the Air Corps and the Naval Service. The accounts of the experiences they have had in the Defence Forces are totally unacceptable in the context of the kind of Defence Forces we should have whereb…

We have had battle groups for years.

I thank Senators for their contributions. To respond to the issues they raised, which have come to light because of public comments made by the group now called "Women of Honour" and which have been reinforced by conversations my Department and I had with serving personnel, I wish to reinforce to the House how determined I am to address this issue. I say to anyone who suffered during his or her time in the Defence Forces that, as Minister for Defence, I am truly sorry that they had that experience. That is not the …

I take the point Senator Craughwell made and am not casting aspersions on that. I am just giving the reasoning for our being so clear on that. Some Members have raised individual barracks and so on, such as Custume Barracks in Athlone. It is a fantastic facility and I can promise we will continue investing there. It is a very strategic part of our Defence Forces infrastructure, as Senator Carrigy knows. It has very strong advocates and we hear them. There are of course other issues relating to HR, which we are work…