Noel Grealish (Galway West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State and his officials. I asked a question in the Dáil a number of weeks ago to which the Minister of State replied:

The Defence Forces have full control over recruitment. No civilian is involved in this. It is solely the responsibility of the Defence Forces headed by military management and the Chief of Staff who has his own people in that recruitment office.

I believe that is incorrect. The terms and conditions on enlistments to the Defence Forces, regardless of the branch, are set by the Minister and the Department of Defence, not the Chief of Staff. The Department of Defence and the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform agree the terms and conditions and then the advertisement is placed. Only after that does the Chief of Staff take over. It is not the sole function of the Chief of Staff to carry out recruitment. The view that it is needs to be corrected. Will the Minister of State respond on that first?