I must now deal with a postponed division relating to the motion regarding the Coast Guard. On Tuesday, 2 December on the question, "That the amendment to the motion be agreed to", a division was claimed and in accordance with Standing Order 85(2), that division must be taken now.
Irish Coast Guard Search and Rescue Services: Motion (Resumed) [Private Members]
The following motion was moved by Deputy David Cullinane on Tuesday, 2 December 2025:
That Dáil Éireann:
notes that:
— the Irish Coast Guard's search and rescue (SAR) helicopter service serves a vital role in saving lives at sea and supporting emergency responses across the State;
— SAR air crews are required to work 24-hour shifts, yet these shifts are being recorded as only 16.5 hours of duty time under Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) approvals; and
— this under-recording arises from "factoring" schemes, normally applied only to standby or reserve crews, which reduce a full 24-hour continuous duty period to 16 hours and 30 minutes on paper;
recognises:
— the dedication and professionalism of Coast Guard SAR crews, who protect coastal communities across Ireland;
— that SAR crews are required to be fully deployable within minutes throughout the entire 24-hour period, meaning the time cannot reasonably be classified as rest time; and
— the necessity of ensuring strict compliance with all working-time, safety, and fatigue-management regulations;
expresses its full support for Coast Guard SAR crews and affirms their right to safe, fair and legally compliant working conditions; and
calls on the Minister for Transport and the Irish Aviation Authority to:
— urgently review the system of recording SAR crew working hours;
— ensure full compliance with S.I. No. 507/2006, Council Directive 2000/79/EC, and all relevant European Union (EU) and national safety legislation;
— end the use of factoring schemes, that prevent accurate recording of the full 24-hour working period undertaken by SAR crews; and
— ensure that working time, not merely duty time, is properly recorded and regulated in accordance with EU law.
Debate resumed on amendment No. 1:
To delete all words after "Dáil Éireann" and substitute the following:
"notes that:
— the provision of an effective Maritime Search and Rescue (SAR) service is critical to Ireland as an island nation with a strong maritime sector, and the sector depends on the reliability and professionalism of the Irish Coast Guard and all its component parts, including Coast Guard helicopter crews; and
— the aviation service contract allows the Coast Guard to meet its obligations as prescribed in the National Search and Rescue Plan, the National Maritime Oil/HNS Spill Contingency Plan and its capacity to support other State agencies, in particular inland SAR support to An Garda Síochána and provision of Air Ambulance services to the Health Service Executive, including day and night support to the island communities;
recognises that:
— the continued delivery of safe, efficient, and effective aviation services for the Irish Coast Guard is the overarching priority for the Government;
— the safety of SAR crews, in particular, is of paramount concern; and
— the introduction of new Fatigue Risk Management Systems, and enhanced crew rest facilities, under the new contract, provide a step-change in ensuring continued SAR crew safety and wellbeing; and
accepts that:
— by law, matters pertaining to working hours, flight time limitations, and shift patterns of SAR crew are entirely a matter for the Irish Aviation Authority, as per their regulatory remit; and
— as such, these specific matters are de facto outside the remit of the Minister for Transport.".
-(Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment, Deputy Alan Dillon)
Amendment put:
The Dáil divided: Tá, 72; Níl, 65; Staon, 0.
Tá
- Aird, William.
- Ardagh, Catherine.
- Boland, Grace.
- Brabazon, Tom.
- Brennan, Brian.
- Brennan, Shay.
- Brophy, Colm.
- Browne, James.
- Burke, Colm.
- Burke, Peter.
- Butterly, Paula.
- Buttimer, Jerry.
- Cahill, Michael.
- Calleary, Dara.
- Carroll MacNeill, Jennifer.
- Chambers, Jack.
- Cleere, Peter 'Chap'.
- Clendennen, John.
- Collins, Niall.
- Connolly, John.
- Cooney, Joe.
- Crowe, Cathal.
- Currie, Emer.
- Daly, Martin.
- Dempsey, Aisling.
- Devlin, Cormac.
- Dillon, Alan.
- Dolan, Albert.
- Feighan, Frankie.
- Fleming, Sean.
- Foley, Norma.
- Geoghegan, James.
- Grealish, Noel.
- Harkin, Marian.
- Healy-Rae, Michael.
- Heneghan, Barry.
- Heydon, Martin.
- Higgins, Emer.
- Keogh, Keira.
- Lawless, James.
- Lowry, Michael.
- Martin, Micheál.
- Maxwell, David.
- McAuliffe, Paul.
- McCarthy, Noel.
- McConalogue, Charlie.
- McCormack, Tony.
- McEntee, Helen.
- McGrath, Séamus.
- Moran, Kevin Boxer.
- Moynihan, Aindrias.
- Moynihan, Shane.
- Murnane O'Connor, Jennifer.
- Neville, Joe.
- O'Brien, Darragh.
- O'Connell, Maeve.
- O'Connor, James.
- O'Donnell, Kieran.
- O'Meara, Ryan.
- O'Shea, John Paul.
- O'Sullivan, Christopher.
- O'Sullivan, Pádraig.
- Ó Cearúil, Naoise.
- Ó Muirí, Naoise.
- Richmond, Neale.
- Roche, Peter.
- Scanlon, Eamon.
- Smith, Brendan.
- Smyth, Niamh.
- Timmins, Edward.
- Troy, Robert.
- Ward, Barry.
Níl
- Ahern, Ciarán.
- Bacik, Ivana.
- Bennett, Cathy.
- Brady, John.
- Buckley, Pat.
- Carthy, Matt.
- Clarke, Sorca.
- Collins, Michael.
- Conway-Walsh, Rose.
- Coppinger, Ruth.
- Cronin, Réada.
- Crowe, Seán.
- Cullinane, David.
- Cummins, Jen.
- Doherty, Pearse.
- Donnelly, Paul.
- Ellis, Dessie.
- Farrelly, Aidan.
- Farrell, Mairéad.
- Fitzmaurice, Michael.
- Gibney, Sinéad.
- Gogarty, Paul Nicholas.
- Gould, Thomas.
- Guirke, Johnny.
- Hayes, Eoin.
- Healy, Seamus.
- Hearne, Rory.
- Kelly, Alan.
- Kenny, Eoghan.
- Kenny, Martin.
- Kerrane, Claire.
- Lawless, Paul.
- Lawlor, George.
- Mac Lochlainn, Pádraig.
- McGettigan, Donna.
- McGrath, Mattie.
- McGuinness, Conor D.
- Mitchell, Denise.
- Murphy, Paul.
- Mythen, Johnny.
- Nash, Ged.
- Newsome Drennan, Natasha.
- Nolan, Carol.
- O'Callaghan, Cian.
- O'Donoghue, Richard.
- O'Gorman, Roderic.
- O'Hara, Louis.
- O'Reilly, Louise.
- O'Rourke, Darren.
- Ó Broin, Eoin.
- Ó Laoghaire, Donnchadh.
- Ó Murchú, Ruairí.
- Ó Snodaigh, Aengus.
- Ó Súilleabháin, Fionntán.
- Quaide, Liam.
- Quinlivan, Maurice.
- Rice, Pádraig.
- Sheehan, Conor.
- Sherlock, Marie.
- Smith, Duncan.
- Stanley, Brian.
- Tóibín, Peadar.
- Wall, Mark.
- Ward, Charles.
- Whitmore, Jennifer.
Staon
Tellers: Tá, Deputies Emer Currie and Paul McAuliffe; Níl, Deputies Pádraig Mac Lochlainn and Denise Mitchell.
Amendment declared carried.
Question put: "That the motion, as amended, be agreed to."
The Dáil divided: Tá, 72; Níl, 65; Staon, 0.
Tá
- Aird, William.
- Ardagh, Catherine.
- Boland, Grace.
- Brabazon, Tom.
- Brennan, Brian.
- Brennan, Shay.
- Brophy, Colm.
- Browne, James.
- Burke, Colm.
- Burke, Peter.
- Butterly, Paula.
- Buttimer, Jerry.
- Cahill, Michael.
- Calleary, Dara.
- Carroll MacNeill, Jennifer.
- Chambers, Jack.
- Cleere, Peter 'Chap'.
- Clendennen, John.
- Collins, Niall.
- Connolly, John.
- Cooney, Joe.
- Crowe, Cathal.
- Currie, Emer.
- Daly, Martin.
- Dempsey, Aisling.
- Devlin, Cormac.
- Dillon, Alan.
- Dolan, Albert.
- Feighan, Frankie.
- Fleming, Sean.
- Foley, Norma.
- Geoghegan, James.
- Grealish, Noel.
- Harkin, Marian.
- Healy-Rae, Michael.
- Heneghan, Barry.
- Heydon, Martin.
- Higgins, Emer.
- Keogh, Keira.
- Lawless, James.
- Lowry, Michael.
- Martin, Micheál.
- Maxwell, David.
- McAuliffe, Paul.
- McCarthy, Noel.
- McConalogue, Charlie.
- McCormack, Tony.
- McEntee, Helen.
- McGrath, Séamus.
- Moran, Kevin Boxer.
- Moynihan, Aindrias.
- Moynihan, Shane.
- Murnane O'Connor, Jennifer.
- Neville, Joe.
- O'Brien, Darragh.
- O'Connell, Maeve.
- O'Connor, James.
- O'Donnell, Kieran.
- O'Meara, Ryan.
- O'Shea, John Paul.
- O'Sullivan, Christopher.
- O'Sullivan, Pádraig.
- Ó Cearúil, Naoise.
- Ó Muirí, Naoise.
- Richmond, Neale.
- Roche, Peter.
- Scanlon, Eamon.
- Smith, Brendan.
- Smyth, Niamh.
- Timmins, Edward.
- Troy, Robert.
- Ward, Barry.
Níl
- Ahern, Ciarán.
- Bacik, Ivana.
- Bennett, Cathy.
- Brady, John.
- Buckley, Pat.
- Carthy, Matt.
- Clarke, Sorca.
- Collins, Michael.
- Conway-Walsh, Rose.
- Coppinger, Ruth.
- Cronin, Réada.
- Crowe, Seán.
- Cullinane, David.
- Cummins, Jen.
- Doherty, Pearse.
- Donnelly, Paul.
- Ellis, Dessie.
- Farrelly, Aidan.
- Farrell, Mairéad.
- Fitzmaurice, Michael.
- Gibney, Sinéad.
- Gogarty, Paul Nicholas.
- Gould, Thomas.
- Guirke, Johnny.
- Hayes, Eoin.
- Healy, Seamus.
- Hearne, Rory.
- Kelly, Alan.
- Kenny, Eoghan.
- Kenny, Martin.
- Kerrane, Claire.
- Lawless, Paul.
- Lawlor, George.
- Mac Lochlainn, Pádraig.
- McGettigan, Donna.
- McGrath, Mattie.
- McGuinness, Conor D.
- Mitchell, Denise.
- Murphy, Paul.
- Mythen, Johnny.
- Nash, Ged.
- Newsome Drennan, Natasha.
- Nolan, Carol.
- O'Callaghan, Cian.
- O'Donoghue, Richard.
- O'Gorman, Roderic.
- O'Hara, Louis.
- O'Reilly, Louise.
- O'Rourke, Darren.
- Ó Broin, Eoin.
- Ó Laoghaire, Donnchadh.
- Ó Murchú, Ruairí.
- Ó Snodaigh, Aengus.
- Ó Súilleabháin, Fionntán.
- Quaide, Liam.
- Quinlivan, Maurice.
- Rice, Pádraig.
- Sheehan, Conor.
- Sherlock, Marie.
- Smith, Duncan.
- Stanley, Brian.
- Tóibín, Peadar.
- Wall, Mark.
- Ward, Charles.
- Whitmore, Jennifer.
Staon
Tellers: Tá, Deputies Emer Currie and Paul McAuliffe; Níl, Deputies Pádraig Mac Lochlainn and Denise Mitchell.
Question declared carried.