asked the Minister for Defence the total amount paid in overtime to members of the Defence Forces for the year ended 30th September, 1974, or for any other recent period for which figures are available.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Defence Forces' Overtime.
10.
There is no provision for payment of overtime to members of the Defence Forces.
Would the Minister not consider that now is the time to translate his verbal thanks into something more concrete? The Army, too, realise that talk is cheap. Surely the great regard he has shown for them here verbally should be translated into something financial now.
Armies all over the world are not paid overtime, generally speaking. We have a Border allowance which is paid to married officers, single officers, married men and single men ranging from £1 a day down to 40p a day. The total cost of this was £354,000 in the period from 1st October, 1973, to 30th September, 1974. It is of the order of service in armed forces that soldiers receive various things such as food, dentistry, medicines, hospitalisation and various other things and there is no question of overtime. Our desire would be not to relate this Border allowance to the services given because, quite frankly, we could not. The number of hours worked would not relate to the amount of Border allowance given. Our feeling on Border allowance is that it is just in appreciation of particularly onerous and demanding duties. There are various other aspects. We do not charge them for their food in certain cases. It is really merely a token of appreciation of the work they are doing. I accept the right of this House to criticise me fiercely but I would suggest to the House that, in the present situation as indicated to me last week with 1,030 people dead in this holocaust, Members must be very careful that they not affect morale and recruitment because it is on the Garda and on the Army that we depend for our safety.
(Interruptions.)
What about the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs in your humbug and bluff?
Does the Minister agree that the duties of armies all over the world could not be equated with the duties our Army are being called on to perform? Does he not feel that it is very damaging to the morale of a soldier if he realises that he is doing duty comparable to the duties of members of the Garda who are paid a considerable amount of overtime?
There is no comparision between the Garda and the Army. They are two different services. They are paid in two different ways. If the Opposition wanted to suggest that the Border allowance should be greater or that it should be paid in a different way that would be quite legitimate, but to say that there should be overtime in an army where the duties and the situation are entirely different is a mistake in my view. The Opposition are causing trouble with recruitment and morale and anybody who does that is as bad as a subversive.
(Interruptions.)
Humbug.
If the Minister is so concerned about the undermining of the morale of the Army would he now publicly repudiate the allegation and the attacks made on the Army by his colleague, the Minister for Posts and Telegraphs?
I am answering my questions as Minister for Defence. The Opposition can put down any question they like and I will answer it.
Answer the question. Collective responsibility how are you.
Question No. 14.