The purpose of the Bill is to amend the existing Defence Forces (Temporary Provisions) Acts by the enactment of certain provisions which are essential or highly desirable in the light of the present emergency.
Section 4 of the Bill enables the Government, when they consider that the circumstances are of such a nature as to warrant their so doing, to make an order declaring that a state of emergency exists for the purposes of the Bill, and to revoke any such order when there is no further necessity for its remaining in force. On such an order being made, certain sections of the Bill, which are of an emergency nature and which I now propose to explain, would become operative.
Taking them in order, the first section of an emergency nature is Section 10, which provides that during a period in which an order declaring a state of emergency to exist is in force, the Minister for Defence may require transport undertakings to give priority to military traffic. No difficulty in regard to transport arrangements has been experienced during the mobilisations which have taken place since the commencement of the present emergency and I do not anticipate that in normal circumstances it will be necessary to use the powers provided by the section. Nevertheless, there is no doubt that in certain circumstances it would be very desirable that the powers should exist and it is considered advisable, therefore, to ensure now that they will be available, if required.
Provision is made for the payment of compensation at agreed rates to the owners of transport undertakings in respect of any action taken under Section 10, or if agreement cannot be reached as to the amount of compensation, for the matter to be dealt with in accordance with legislation to be enacted. In this connection I hope to introduce at an early date legislation providing for a system of arbitration.
The next section of an emergency nature is Section 12. This section enables the Minister for Defence to make regulations governing the question of billeting in a period of emergency. Power already exists in regard to this matter under the Defence Forces (Temporary Provisions) Act, 1923, but when the necessary machinery was being prepared in connection with the present emergency, it was found that the procedure laid down in the 1923 Act would be very difficult in operation. It requires the Government to authorise by name the officers who may issue billeting requisitions and further provides that the authorised officers must direct the requisitions to the Chief Officer of Police of the district in which the billets are required, the police officer in question then being responsible for the provision of the billets. In the circumstances in which billeting would become necessary this procedure would be unduly cumbersome and rigid and it is proposed to simplify it as far as possible in the Regulations which will be made under Section 12 and which, among other things, will prescribe the rates to be paid for billets.
An extremely important section is Section 24 which will enable enlistment in the Regular Forces for the period of an emergency. Existing legislation permits of enlistment for a definite period of years only and the section is essential, therefore, in connection with the present recruiting campaign arising out of the Government's decision to enlist men in the Forces for the duration of the present emergency. The procedure in regard to enlistment, attestation, etc., in such circumstances is fully prescribed in the Bill.
Section 56 provides that in a period of an emergency certain sections of the Road Traffic Act, 1933, regarding speed limits, the carrying of lights, etc., will not apply to members of the Defence Forces during the period of an emergency. Instructions will be issued by the military authorities to ensure that these exemptions, which are intended only for periods of grave emergency when circumstances would render them absolutely essential, will not be misused.
That disposes of the sections which actually become operative during a period of an emergency but there are two others which, while not specified as such, are of an emergency nature. The first is Section 11 which will enable the Minister to require that plant, vessels, vehicles, etc., of transport undertakings which may in an emergency have to be requisitioned for military purposes shall be suitably adapted so as to meet military requirements. This is a section which is not likely to be extensively used. If it is used, care will be taken to ensure that there is as little interference as possible with the normal use of the articles. I mentioned in the Dáil a visualised instance, namely, that owners of omnibuses might conceivably be required to adapt them by the introduction of fittings which would enable them to be used as ambulances if the necessity arose. Provision is made for the payment of compensation in any such cases at rates to be agreed upon, or if agreement cannot be reached, in a manner to be prescribed by legislation.
The other section is Section 57 which provides that members of the Reserve who are called out on permanent service and persons who enlist in the Forces in a period of emergency will be reinstated in their employment on demobilisation. I think it will be generally agreed that this provision is highly desirable and no more than reasonable to safeguard the interests of employees who offer their services to the State in an emergency such as the present. I am sure that the majority of employers will recognise that it is their duty to reinstate their employees who respond to the Government's appeal to the men of the country, but it is considered desirable to provide against any employer who might utilise the present position to dispense with the services of some of his employees permanently. In sub-section (2) of Section 57 reasonable safeguards as between employer and employee are provided in regard to contracts of service and apprenticeship. It is provided in sub-section (4) that the Minister for Industry and Commerce may make regulations to restrain employers from dispensing with the services of their employees because of any commitments—such as liability for annual training—which they may enter upon as members of the Defence Forces.
The Bill also deals with the question of the liability of members of the Defence Forces to be employed on military service. The position in this regard is not clearly stated in existing legislation. The actual liability of members of the Defence Forces (other than the crews of State ships, who will be mentioned later) is now prescribed by Section 41 to be confined to the area of the State. Section 5 provides that where, as occasionally happens, members of the Defence Forces are abroad on courses of instruction or as members of equitation teams, etc., the Defence Forces Acts will apply to them. This will cover such matters as subjection to military discipline.
I think I may refer here to Section 6, which relates to active service. Under Section 2 of the 1923 Act, the Government may declare the troops to be on active service only in the case of imminent or recent operations against the enemy. It is not considered desirable that a declaration of active service should be synonymous with a declaration that attack by an enemy is imminent and Section 6 (2) of this Bill provides that the Government may declare the troops to be on active service whenever they are of opinion that circumstances are of such a nature as to warrant their so doing.
A number of sections of the Bill arise out of the establishment of the Marine and Coast-watching Service. In connection with this service a small number of motor torpedo boats and trawlers have been and are being acquired for the patrolling of territorial waters. The service is not at present sufficiently large to justify its maintenance as a separate force. It is being maintained, therefore, as a component of the Defence Forces, its personnel being governed by the Defence Forces Acts.
The most important of the sections relating to this service are Section 50, which provides for the maintenance of public armed vessels; Sections 17 and 18, which will enable marine ranks and ratings to be conferred on the personnel of the vessels, and Sections 45 to 48 which, in conjunction with the Sixth Schedule, prescribe a code of marine offences. Section 41 provides for the liability of the crews to serve outside territorial waters. It may be necessary for the vessels to proceed outside territorial waters in circumstances such as the carrying out of rescue work or in pursuit of vessels which had entered the waters in contravention of international law.
Sections 43 and 44 are necessary to enable the personnel of Voluntary Aid Societies, such as the Red Cross Society, to obtain the protection provided by the Geneva Convention of 1929. The Convention in question provides that such personnel, if subject to military law and regulations, shall be respected and protected in all circumstances and shall not, if they fall into the hands of an enemy, be treated as prisoners of war. Sections mentioned, therefore, provide for their being subject to military law when accompanying the troops on active service and, in addition, ensure that personnel who accompany the troops on active service as motor drivers or otherwise as civilian auxiliaries shall be subject to military law.
Section 58, which provides for the restriction of recruitment for foreign armies and prohibits the publication of recruiting advertisements for such forces in papers printed within the State is considered essential, having regard to this country's status of neutrality.
Of the remaining sections of the Bill, the majority provide for the simplification of administrative procedure. Sub-section 15 (b) and sub-section 16 (c), taken in conjunction with Section 25, will enable persons to be directly commissioned to and directly enlisted in the Reserve. Hitherto, it has been necessary that persons whom it is desired to commission as officers of the Reserve or Volunteer Force should first be commissioned in the Regular Forces for one day and retire therefrom. Similarly, persons enlisting for Volunteer Force Service have had to be enlisted in the Forces for one day and then transferred to the Reserve. The oaths which will be taken by officers directly commissioned to and men directly enlisted in the Reserve are set out in the Third and Fifth Schedules respectively.
Section 49 will amend existing legislation which permits an officer, if charged with an offence, to elect to be tried by court-martial as an alternative to being dealt with summarily. It is desirable that, where an offence is of a trivial nature, it should be possible to dispose of it summarily, thus obviating the expense, delay and inconvenience of a court-martial.
Section 54 simplifies the procedure regarding the transfer of absentees or deserters to military custody by the Gárda Síochána. Hitherto, it has been necessary for the Gárdaí to bring a person suspected of being an absentee or deserter before a district justice, a procedure which in many cases caused some delay. In addition, various descriptive returns had to be furnished by the Gárdaí to the military authorities in connection with such persons. It is now being provided that absentees or deserters may be brought before a peace commissioner, which will eliminate the delay. The furnishing of returns, which was generally unnecessary, is being discontinued.