Vol. 487 No. 7
74 Ms O. Mitchell asked the Minister for Defence if, further to Parliamentary Question No. 106 on 17 December 1997 and, in particular, to his stated contention that uniform allowances are intended to reflect the actual cost incurred, he will now undertake to reimburse the recently commissioned FCA officers the actual vouched cost of the prescribed items purchased by them from tailors approved by his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5051/98]
76 Mr. Dukes asked the Minister for Defence if, further to Parliamentary Question No. 106 on 17 December 1997 and, in particular, to his stated contention that uniform allowances are intended to reflect the actual cost incurred, he will now undertake to reimburse the recently commissioned FCA officers the actual vouched cost of the prescribed items purchased by them from tailors approved by his Department. [5050/98]
118 Mr. Enright asked the Minister for Defence if, further to Parliamentary Question No. 106 on 17 December 1997 and, in particular, to his stated contention that uniform allowances are intended to reflect the actual cost incurred, he will now undertake to reimburse the recently commissioned FCA officers the actual vouched cost of the prescribed items purchased by them from tailors approved by this Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5052/98]
160 Mr. Stanton asked the Minister for Defence if, further to Parliamentary Question No. 106 of 17 December 1997 and, in particular, to his stated contention that uniform allowances are intended to reflect the actual cost incurred, he will now undertake to reimburse the recently commissioned FCA officers the actual vouched cost of the prescribed items purchased by them from tailors approved by his Department. [5175/98]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 74, 76, 118 and 160 together.
Defence Force regulations prescribe that an allowance, the current rate of which is £320, is payable to a person who has been appointed to be an officer of An Fórsa Cosanta Áitiúil towards the cost of providing himself with a tunic and one trousers of officers' pattern standard. The rate of allowance is revised from time to time on foot of claims submitted by the Reserve Defence Force Representative Association (RDFRA) through the Deparment's conciliation and arbitration machinery. All other items of officers' pattern clothing are issuable to officers of An Fórsa Cosanta Áitiúil at the public expense.
