Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to engage with the Select Committee on Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Defence to consider the 2019 Revised Estimates for Vote 35 - Army Pensions and Vote 36 - Defence. I have a short opening statement which sets out the overall position. I will update members on some of the main developments within the defence sector in recent times.

There are two Votes for the defence sector: Vote 35 - Army Pensions and Vote 36 - Defence. The high-level goal is to "provide for the military defence of the State, contribute to national and international peace and security and fulfil all other roles assigned by Government". Accordingly, defence sector outputs are delivered under a single programme in each Vote.

The combined Estimates for defence and Army pensions for 2019 provide for gross expenditure in excess of €1 billion, which represents an increase of €60 million or 6.4% on the figure for 2018. The 2019 provision comprises €758 million for Vote 36, which represents an increase of over €50 million, and €249 million for Vote 35, which represents an increase of €10 million.

The Army pensions Vote has a single programme entitled Provision for Defence Forces Pension Benefits. It makes provision for retired pay, pensions, allowances and gratuities payable to, or in respect of, former members of the Defence Forces and their dependants. Retirement pensions, gratuities and disability pensions account for 99% of all expenditure. The 2019 Estimate provides for a gross sum of over €249 million for the Army pensions Vote, of which some €239 million covers expenditure on all superannuation benefits for former members of the Permanent Defence Force, PDF, and certain dependants. For the most part, pension benefits granted are statutory entitlements once certain criteria are met.

There are approximately 12,480 pensioners who are paid from the Army pensions Vote. During 2018 approximately 340 Defence Forces members retired on pension. It is anticipated that a broadly similar number will retire in 2019.

As the committee is aware, it has been my stated intention to seek extra funding for military pensions as part of the overall future budgetary negotiations. Solid progress has been made on that front. As announced in budget 2019, the gross allocation for Army pensions this year has been increased by €10 million to approximately €249 million, which is very welcome. It builds on a increase in funding of €9.5 million in the 2018 Estimates.

The 2018 review of Defence Forces pensions expenditure which was published with budget 2019 was carried out as part of the 2018 round of spending reviews and undertaken jointly by officials from the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and my Department. Among other things, it concluded that the underlying trend of rising military pensioner numbers was likely to be maintained in the coming years. It recommended that the Army pensions Vote be allocated resources in line with its cost analysis from 2019 onwards to ensure the full funding demands were met.

I turn to Vote 36 - Defence, which is delivered under a single programme entitled Defence Policy and Support, Military Capabilities and Operational Outputs. The defence Vote for 2019 of €758 million includes a pay and allowances allocation of approximately €529 million, while the remaining non-pay allocation of €229 million provides mainly for the renewal and maintenance of essential equipment, infrastructure and standing and operational costs.

The pay and allowances allocation of €529 million provides for the pay and allowances of over 10,400 public service employees, including 9,500 PDF personnel, 550 civilian employees and 355 civil servants, and makes provision for increases due under the Public Service Stability Agreement 2018-2020. The agreement contains proposals for increases in pay, ranging from 6.2% to 7.4%, over its lifetime. By the end of 2020, the pay of all those who earn less than €70,000 will be restored to pre-FEMPI levels.

There has been ongoing recruitment within the Defence Forces in recent years, at both enlisted personnel and officer level. It includes general service recruits, apprentices, cadets and direct entry officers. The current recruitment plan envisages approximately 800 new entrants being inducted across the Army, the Air Corps and the Naval Service this year. These recruits will avail of the highest levels of training and, in return, the Defence Forces will benefit from the injection of energy and enthusiasm that every organisation, particularly the Defence Forces, needs. Promotions are also ongoing within the Defence Forces, with approximately 600 promotions across all areas of the Defence Forces in 2018, meaning that one in 14 serving members is promoted.

In 2017, under my direction, the Department of Defence brought the issues of recruitment and retention in the Permanent Defence Force to the attention of the Public Service Pay Commission. The Department has provided data, as requested by the commission, for consideration and the commission's work is ongoing. My Department will continue to engage throughout the process.

The budget allocation includes over €2 million for Reserve Defence Force pay in 2019. This will allow for 26,000 training days for reservists this year. I acknowledge and appreciate the commitment and enthusiasm of Reserve Defence Force members who provide voluntary service throughout the country. The Department's White Paper is clear that there is a continued requirement to retain and develop the Reserve Defence Force. A key ongoing challenge for the force is recruiting and retaining personnel. Two recruitment campaigns for the Army Reserve and the Naval Service Reserve are planned this year - one in March and the second in October.

The non-pay allocation comprises both current and capital elements. The current expenditure allocation of €123 million in 2019 provides mainly for expenditure in meeting ongoing Defence Forces standing and operational costs such as utilities, fuel, catering, maintenance, information technology and training.

The capital expenditure allocation for Vote 36 in 2019 has been increased to €106 million, which represents an increase of €29 million or 38% on the 2018 allocation. It will allow the defence organisation to undertake a programme of sustained equipment replacement and infrastructural development across the Army, the Air Corps and the Naval Service, as identified and prioritised in the White Paper on Defence. Among the main equipment programme priorities planned in 2019 are the ongoing upgrade of the Army Mowag armoured personnel carriers, the replacement of the Air Corps Cessna aircraft, the purchase of military transport vehicles and the mid-life refit of Naval Service vessels.

The Government is committed to ensuring that the Defence Forces built infrastructure continues to be enhanced and modernised and to that end the Defence Vote makes provision for increased investment in this area, with more than €28 million allocated for 2019, an increase of almost €5 million, or 20.6%. A number of projects planned for 2019, which are progressing on a phased basis, will upgrade and maintain the infrastructure essential for the Defence Forces. The overall capital allocation of €541 million for Defence for the period 2018 to 2022, as set out in the national development plan, NDP, emphasises the importance attached by this Government to ensuring that the Defence Forces have the capability necessary to deliver on all the roles assigned by Government. This funding will play a vital role in ensuring that the priorities identified in the White Paper can be met and that the Defence Forces can deliver fully across all roles.

I will now outline some of the key roles and outputs delivered under the defence programme. The Defence Forces continue to make a considerable contribution in their international peace and security role. As of February 2019, Ireland was contributing 673 Permanent Defence Force personnel to nine missions throughout the world. In addition, personnel are deployed to a range of international organisations and national representations. The main overseas missions in which Defence Forces personnel are currently deployed are the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, UNIFIL, with 458 personnel, and the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force, UNDOF, in Syria, with 136 personnel. Up until recently, Irish troops served as part of a joint Irish-Finnish Battalion in UNIFIL, including a small Estonian platoon. Due to other national commitments, both Finland and Estonia withdrew from the Irish-Finnish battalion in UNIFIL in November 2018. As an interim measure, an additional contingent of approximately 106 Defence Forces personnel have been deployed to the UNIFIL mission to cover the backfilling of the Finnish contingent for a 12-month period. This additional commitment will continue throughout 2019 as Ireland has assumed full duties and responsibilities of IRISHBATT up to November 2019. Efforts to source a partner country to replace the Finnish contingent are progressing well.

Since October 2017, the Naval Service has been participating in the EU naval mission, Operation Sophia, which specifically seeks to counter human trafficking and smuggling in the southern central Mediterranean. The question of a further deployment to Operation Sophia in the Mediterranean in 2019 is being considered in the context of the ongoing situation in the Mediterranean and the overall EU response thereto; the demands on the Defence Forces; our overseas commitments; and available resources. The Department of Justice and Equality and An Garda Síochána have primary responsibility for Ireland's domestic security supported, as required, by the Defence Forces as part of their aid to the civil power function. This role is multifaceted and in 2018 included a varied set of tasks such as Garda air support missions, Central Bank security guards, prisoner escorts, explosive ordnance disposal call-outs and Naval Service diving operations.

The Defence Forces also provide assistance to the principal response agencies tasked with responding to major emergencies. For example, in 2018, the Defence Forces were deployed on a number of missing person searches, the Naval Service conducted fisheries boardings and the Air Corps undertook a number of emergency aeromedical support missions. The professional competence shown by the Defence Forces in undertaking these roles is greatly valued and appreciated by all stakeholders and was further illustrated by the extensive and wide-ranging assistance provided in response to the severe weather emergency last March.

The Civil Defence is also funded from the Defence Vote and remains a vital component within each local authority's emergency response arrangements. Volunteers from Civil Defence have responded very effectively when required, most notably during the aforementioned weather emergency. I have secured an additional €500,000 from the Dormant Accounts Fund in 2019 which will be used to enhance the Civil Defence four-wheel drive capability. This will ensure that Civil Defence continues to perform its core function of supporting the principal response agencies as set down in the 2015 White Paper on Defence.

The allocation of more than €1 billion for the defence sector for 2019 emphasises the importance attached by the Government to ensuring that the Defence Forces have the resources necessary to deliver on all roles assigned by Government, both at home and overseas, and demonstrates the Government’s commitment to ensuring that the Defence Forces have the capabilities necessary to deliver on all their assigned roles.

Members have been provided with briefing material on the individual subheads for the defence and Army pensions Estimates and I look forward to positive engagement on any issues they may wish to discuss.