257 Mrs. T. Ahearn asked the Minister for Defence if he intends to bring the pensions of the ex-servicemen, who retired prior to October 1990, on a par with those who retired after that date; and if he will make a statement on the matter.

I presume the Deputy is referring to the additions to pension in respect of military service allowance which are payable in the case of personnel retiring on or after 1 August 1990. These additions were introduced on foot of a recommendation in the report of the Commission on Remuneration and Conditions of Service in the Defence Forces that the military service allowance should be made pensionable. The implementation of the recommendation was the subject of detailed discussions with the military representative associations. The Commission's recommendation is being applied to personnel retiring on or after 1 August 1990, ie the day following publication of the Commission's report.