I commend Deputy Stanley on putting down a question on this important matter. I welcome the response from the Minister. I grew up in Kildare at a time when, like many generations before me, the Curragh was a vibrant, living community. Unfortunately, in recent decades, the Department of Defence took as its policy the depopulation of the Curragh camp. Worse still, in recent years, we have seen the demolition of many houses in the area, which is completely wrong. I thank the current Taoiseach and former Minister for putting a stop to the demolition of houses. I welcome the Minister, Deputy McEntee's reply today. The commitment to refurbish those houses is very positive. I ask her to also look at the Orchard Park 100-house development, where a few houses remain in Army ownership. The intention is to transfer them to the local authority, which is in agreement, but there are still some tenants in those houses who would want to avail of an option to purchase. I ask the Minister to look at that.

Sentiment score: 0.22

76. Deputy Seán Ó Fearghaíl asked the Minister for Defence her plans to increase cadet pay; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [33119/26]

Sentiment score: 0.11

This question is a logical follow-on from the one posed by Deputy Stanley. It asks the Minister about action on cadet pay. I ask it against the background of the continuing crisis in recruitment and retention. It is not just a question, but a call for urgent action.

Sentiment score: -0.11

I acknowledge the Minister's positive disposition to this matter in many aspects of her response but the general secretary of RACO, Conor King, recently set out in the Irish Examiner the fact that cadets are paid far less than the enlisted soldiers they work beside in their first five years. This anomaly would be indefensible in any other profession. Cadetship is a gruelling high-intensity apprenticeship like no other. As well as undergoing long hours of education and training, cadets may be deployed as an aid to civil power operations and are routinely used as the go-to unit for State ceremonial events, representing Ireland at moments of national and international significance. They demonstrated their usefulness during the course of the Covid crisis. We have a problem with recruitment and retention. Much has been done in that area but low cadet pay is a serious blockage in recruitment and needs to be addressed urgently.

Sentiment score: -0.07

I have to proudly state that those who emerge from cadet schools are people of an extraordinary calibre that we are all enormously proud of. Low pay might be tolerable if the cadetships were short or if the financial impact disappeared once training ended but under the single pension scheme, earnings are averaged across an entire career and, therefore, at the end of a career, the cadet is still being penalised by virtue of the reduced pension they will receive. That is not a tolerable situation. The recruitment age for cadets has been increased to 39 years. If people are 30-plus and have a family and a mortgage there is no way, unless they have very substantial savings, that they could afford to become a cadet and take the vastly reduced pay available at that level. The good step of increasing the age profile is being hampered and impeded by the low rate of cadet pay. It really needs to be resolved. On a completely different but related matter, the cadet school has ended its relationship with Malta. For many years, the Irish cadet school trained members of the Maltese military in a really beneficial and impressive manner. I regret this has ended. Can something be done to restore that programme?

Sentiment score: 0.21