Taoiseach Micheál Martin said he was not ruling out the possibility of a statutory investigation for the group Women of Honor, which highlighted allegations of assault and sexual harassment within the Defense Forces.
Mr Martin informed parliamentary party Fianna Fáil on Wednesday of his meeting with the group and said he wanted a judge-led scoping inquiry to be launched as soon as possible.
The group walked out of a meeting with Foreign and Defense Secretary Simon Coveney last week after not receiving a commitment that there would be a statutory inquiry.
The Taoiseach also told his colleagues at Fianna Fáil that the government would seek to extend its measures to address the rising cost of living for students and parents facing difficulties in the education sector.
Micheál Martin that he was well aware of the costs of education. According to party colleagues who attended the meeting at Leinster House, he said he was looking at measures to help students and parents.
“With respect to third-tier funding, we recognize the need to provide a base level of funding that supports colleges and universities and the need to respond to the demographic pressures that exist,” he told TDs. and senators of his party.
It follows measures agreed at the highest level of government to deal with the impact of the sharp rise in inflation in 2021 and early 2022, particularly in the energy sector.
Mr Martin told the meeting he was committed to ensuring that people’s purchasing power was protected.
“We are aware of the impact of the cost of living and its energy-related part,” he said.
“It is important to protect the disposable income of workers and families.”
He said the government was now considering a series of measures to enable people to cope with the rising cost of living and to protect people’s disposable income during a difficult time.
Reasoning
Education Minister Norma Foley also explained why she chose a Leaving Certificate written exam in 2022. There was little resistance to the decision.
“We were relieved to find that the Leaving Cert changes were well received by the vast majority of students. We have the feeling that the problem has been solved, ”said a TD.
He also told the meeting that the government would announce a major modernization program next week that would address the need to make it affordable. He acknowledged that there are problems with modernization at present, especially the initial costs.
Mr Martin said concerns about orthopedic wait times for children were concerning, particularly in light of new revelations that showed children with spina bifida were waiting up to four years for surgery.
“We have provided funds to give the health system the capacity to provide treatment and the children cannot wait for such a long time. The system must provide the resources that have been provided to it,” he said.
Mr Martin also told his colleagues that Sinn Féin was hardening its strategy to attack the government.
“We cannot allow their parliamentary and political tactics which seek to delay progress on many key issues. We at Fianna Fáil are in a government of action that wants to get things done,” he said.
