Defence Forces pay and retention issues to be addressed, says minister

The Minister for Defence promises that pay and retention issues in the defence forces will be addressed in the coming weeks.

Paul Kehoe confirmed that he will bring recommendations to Cabinet soon and Ministers will then take action.

Defence forces veterans are set to parade in Cork this weekend to highlight poor pay and staffing conditions endured by members of the Defence Forces.

The Respect and Loyalty Parade will be held in Cork city centre on Saturday and is being organised by members of the lobby group Wives & Partners of the Defence Forces (WPDF).

Mr Kehoe, who praised the work carried out by the naval forces both at home and abroad, said he is now waiting until the independent pay commission reports to the Government before making any recommendations on salaries:

"The issue in and around pay and retention is a very important issue and has been a challenge for me as Minister. I hope to have this addressed sometime in the next number of weeks when the independent commission on pay wll publish their findings and make recommendations to Government.

"I will bring whatever recommendations the pay commission make to Cabinet and we will then decide what has to be done," Mr Kehoe told the Newstalk Breakfast show.

Last month it was revealed in the Dáil that the defence forces saw a net gain of just three new members in 2017 despite recruitment campaign.

At the time Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said more than €50 million is being invested in barracks, equipment, pensions and pay. But he admitted that the turn-over rate of 8% is not acceptable and should be reduced to 5% to ensure that healthy staffing levels are maintained.