Paul Murphy Demands Reversal of Reservists' €92 Pay Cut
Paul Murphy called for the reversal of a cut to Defence Forces Reservists' pay, arguing the withdrawal of the €92 daily payment since September disincentivises recruitment. He said the reduction narrows the range of paid activities, described it as 'a very mean cut', and noted his parliamentary question shows a business case is being prepared.
Paul Murphy asked that the pay cut for Defence Forces Reservists be withdrawn. He said that until September reservists were paid €92 a day for the vast majority of work and operations, and that payment has since been withdrawn.
He pointed to a target to increase Reservists to about 4,000 while current numbers are less than 2,000. He argued €92 is not a large amount but that its removal has been seen by Reservists as a mean cut that could disincentivise recruitment and retention.
A minister replied that they were not aware of the particular cut and would raise the matter with the new Minister for Defence. Paul Murphy said he has a written parliamentary question (PQ) with the Minister for Defence indicating a business case is being prepared.
The minister emphasised that the Office of Reserve Defence Forces has been established and capacity behind it has been beefed up to support recruitment. The minister said the aim should be to incentivise recruitment to the service, not to disincentivise it.
Demand to reverse pay cut
Paul Murphy asked that the pay cut for Defence Forces Reservists be withdrawn. He said that until September reservists were paid €92 a day for the vast majority of work and operations, and that payment has since been withdrawn.
Scale and recruitment implications
He pointed to a target to increase Reservists to about 4,000 while current numbers are less than 2,000. He argued €92 is not a large amount but that its removal has been seen by Reservists as a mean cut that could disincentivise recruitment and retention.
Ministerial reply and procedural update
A minister replied that they were not aware of the particular cut and would raise the matter with the new Minister for Defence. Paul Murphy said he has a written parliamentary question (PQ) with the Minister for Defence indicating a business case is being prepared.
Office of Reserve Defence Forces and policy stance
The minister emphasised that the Office of Reserve Defence Forces has been established and capacity behind it has been beefed up to support recruitment. The minister said the aim should be to incentivise recruitment to the service, not to disincentivise it.
We publish thousands of recordings to make Irish politics transparent and resistant to manipulation. Spotted an error? Report it — together we are building a reliable archive of Irish politics.
Other speeches
Tego samego dnia All speeches from this day →
Richard O'Donoghue
Richard O'Donoghue Pushes for Developer-Led Infrastructure Delivery
Richard Boyd Barrett
Richard Boyd Barrett Challenges Taoiseach on Israel, Gaza and Park Name
Victor Boyhan
Victor Boyhan on Brazil Beef Report and Cataract Surgery Backlog
Martin Daly
Martin Daly urges urgent delivery on housing plan
Danny Healy-Rae
Danny Healy-Rae warns CAP shifts hurt farmers, urges payment to producers
Eoghan Kenny
Eoghan Kenny urges action on trans healthcare after Cork attacks
Transcript
I want to ask if you will withdraw the very cruel cut that has been imposed on Defence Forces Reservists, where up until September they were paid not a large amount of money – €92 a day – for the vast majority of work and operations that they were involved in. But from September of this year this was withdrawn. It makes no sense. Obviously it comes in a context where there is a target of increasing the Reservists to about 4,000 and there is less than 2,000 currently. Like I say, it is only €92. This isn't a huge amount of money. But it has rightly been seen by the Reservists as a very mean cut whereby what they were previously getting paid for, if they are not getting paid for, there is a much more narrow range of activities that they currently get paid for. I do have a written PQ with the Minister for Defence who says a business case is being prepared, but is this not a simple decision that the cut should be reversed? Thank you. Tisha, please. Again, look, I am not aware of that particular cut. I will talk to the new Minister for Defence in respect of that. I did set up the Office of Reserve Defence Forces. We really have beefed up the capacity behind it, all with a view to increasing the number of reservists, because I think it is a very important dimension to our Defence Forces. My view is we should be doing everything to incentivise the recruitment of a service, not disincentivising.