Cormac Devlin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the witnesses for attending this morning. I also thank them for the detailed information they provided in advance of today's meeting which is greatly appreciated.

My first question is for Mr. Clonan. I represent Dún Laoghaire and obviously I have great affinity and respect for the work that the Irish Coast Guard does, in particular the volunteers in the Dún Laoghaire Coast Guard unit. My information is that the Dún Laoghaire Coast Guard is quite busy and I expect it to be far busier this summer given the requirements for an outdoor summer. That will place considerable pressure and strain on the volunteers. My information is that 20 volunteers are attached to the Dún Laoghaire Coast Guard. How is the recruitment of new volunteers nationally going? Obviously, I am sure that the Dún Laoghaire Coast Guard could do with more. Is there a cap on the number of volunteers attached to each Coast Guard station? I also seek information about the replacement of and investment in equipment for Coast Guard stations.