Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

This will come back into full service on 1 March 2020. The Deputy spoke about the commission on the future of defence and we have the White Paper on defence. I will bring that to the Government next week. The Deputy will have heard what the Taoiseach said in the Dáil when Deputy Burton asked about his plans about that.

We have two pilots who returned under the re-entry programme and who were former pilots in the Air Corps. I was delighted to be able to recommission them a number of weeks ago. I understand a number of inquiries have been received from other people who would like to return to service.

On the high-level implementation plan which I spoke about on strengthening our Defence Forces, it includes the Department of the Taoiseach, my Department, military management and the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. A civil-military team has been set up under my direction in the Department of Defence. It is going through all the projects at present. A huge body of work is ongoing in this regard and it will continue.

The Deputy referred to the Garda helicopter. Nobody, including the Minister for Justice and Equality, Deputy Flanagan, has come to me about delays in respect of the Garda helicopter being taken on.

The Deputy spoke about the three-star privates and apprentices. When a person comes into recruit class, he or she is not fully qualified until he or she does the three months' training. Then the person starts on €28,000. There might be a weekend duties allowance and other allowances due if the person gets overseas within a short number of years. An accountant does not start on a full salary the minute he or she starts to work. One must do one's training. That is part of it, just as it is for apprentices. I never distorted the figures. I have always stated that a fully trained, three-star private starts on €28,000 after three months. I was delighted to announce last July that a person in training will receive an extra €40 because now the person does not have to pay the rations that had to be paid previously, so a three-star private in training is getting an increase following the announcement.

As to when I expect to get back to the complement of 9,500, it is difficult. First, we are fully funded for 9,500 personnel after negotiations between my Department's officials and the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. I will not put a date on when-----