Theresa Ahearn
Ceist:35 Mrs. T. Ahearn asked the Minister for Defence the plans, if any, he has to appoint a civilian ombudsman to the Defence Forces. [16600/99]
Vol. 507 No. 3
35 Mrs. T. Ahearn asked the Minister for Defence the plans, if any, he has to appoint a civilian ombudsman to the Defence Forces. [16600/99]
105 Ms Fitzgerald asked the Minister for Defence the plans, if any, he has to appoint a civilian ombudsman to the Defence Forces. [16816/99]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 35 and 105 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 Force. 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.