Louth TD says situation with retained firefighters needs to be immediately addressed

The “dogs on the street” know that the situation with retained firefighters needs to be immediately addressed, according to Dundalk TD Ruairí Ó Murchú. Deputy Ó Murchú was speaking in relation to the ongoing industrial action by retained firefighters.

The Sinn Féin TD said the government “lacks urgency” in dealing with the industrial action by retained firefighters across the State, including in Dundalk, which is scheduled to be escalated in the coming days.

Deputy Ó Murchú said: “In November, my Sinn Féin colleague John Brady introduced a Dáil motion that sought the establishment of a Joint Oireachtas cross-party committee, to sit for four months, and that would have heard evidence from expert witnesses and stakeholders in order to identify the key issues impacting on the Retained Fire Service before bringing recommendations to the Dáil.

“The government took the decision to vote against the motion, abandoning any attempt to resolve a crisis that is crippling the Retained Fire Service.

“And now we are in a situation where retained firefighters, who have been highlighting the issues affecting the service for years to those in power, have, with reticence, started industrial action.”

The Louth TD continued: “They don’t want to be here, they have tried everything else but the government has left them with no choice. They have had enough of being constantly under pressure for many reasons, of having to put themselves on the front line.”

“The government knows what needs to be done in relation to recruitment and retention. We are dealing with under-resourced, under-paid, dedicated professionals who have been working in an unsustainable system for years.”

Deputy Ó Murchú added, “The government needs to immediately engage with the representatives of the retained firefighters to permanently resolve the problems the service has been facing for years.”