Vol. 512 No. 4
68 Mr. Howlin asked the Minister for Defence if his attention has been drawn to comments made by the general secretary of PDFORRA at its recent annual conference that there was growing unrest in the Defence Forces over pay; the steps, if any, he will take to deal with this issue; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26174/99]
Since the 1990 Gleeson report of the commission on Defence Forces remuneration and conditions of service, Defence Forces pay has broadly increased in line with other public service employees. In relation to the most recent national pay agreements – PCW and Partnership 2000 – the Defence Forces representative associations have been particularly successful in negotiating pay increases and other benefits for their members.
I am also pleased to add that discussions are taking place with PDFORRA in the context of a successor to the Partnership 2000 pay agreement. While I look forward to a positive outcome to these discussions, it would not be appropriate for me to comment further at this stage.
