Malcolm Byrne
Ceist:205. Deputy Malcolm Byrne asked the Minister for Defence to outline plans to ensure that cadet pay is ahead of the minimum wage and that the Defence Forces remain an attractive career path. [66902/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraThursday, 27 November 2025
Ceisteanna (205)
Freagraí scríofa
I thank the Deputy for raising this matter.
There has been significant progress made in terms of pay and conditions for the Defence Forces personnel, particularly over the last six years.
The starting pay of a school leaver cadet, on commissioning, was €30,884 in 2019. As of 01 August 2025 a school leaver Cadet, on commissioning to 2nd Lieutenant, is paid over €45,700, an increase of 49%, or over €14,900, in the past six years.
After 2 years at the rank, they are promoted to lieutenant and their pay rises to above €51,000.
Where a graduate joins – the pay rate on commissioning begins at over €51,000. These rates all include pensionable military service allowance.
I am aware that a claim has been received from the Representative Association of Commissioned Officers (RACO) in relation to this matter. The Association’s claim is being dealt with under the Conciliation and Arbitration Scheme (C&A Scheme) for members of the Permanent Defence Force and is the subject of correspondence between the Department and the Representative Association. The Deputy will appreciate that as discussions under the C&A Scheme are confidential to the parties involved it would not be appropriate for me to comment further on the matter at this time
Interest has increased in 2025 with the total number of applications up to the end of October 2025 was 14,879 with 1,819 of those being for cadets competitions. These numbers are greater than the overall number of applications for the entirety of 2024.