Vol. 482 No. 4
34 Proinsias De Rossa asked the Minister for Defence his views on the appointment of an independent ombudsman for military affairs, in view of the criticism expressed at the operation of the complaints inquiry officer system; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18131/97]
43 Mr. Browne (Carlow-Kilkenny) asked the Minister for Defence if he intends to appoint a civilian ombudsman for the Defence Forces; and if he will make a statement on the approach which he intends to take on this matter. [15179/97]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 34 and 43 together.
The question of the appointment of an Ombudsman for the Defence Forces has been raised by PDFORRA under the conciliation and arbitration scheme for the Permanent Defence Forces. The terms of the scheme, which have been agreed with the association, provide that discussions under it are confidential to the parties involved. Accordingly, the Deputy will appreciate that it would not be appropriate for me to comment further on this issue. I might add that revised complaints procedures for the Defence Forces were agreed with PDFORRA and RACO and implemented with effect from May 1996. These procedures included the appointment of an independent complaints inquiry officer to investigate grievances on behalf of the Minister. The agreement provides for a two year trial period after which a review will take place, i.e., in May 1998.
