Mr. Eugene Gargan:

The next questions came from Deputy Cowen with regard to the Air Corps. I think we have just answered that. Reference was made also to recruitment. If there is only one thing members of the committee take away from this discussion today it is that recruitment is absolutely essential. It is an urgent issue that goes to the very heart of our existence. It needs to be addressed absolutely and quickly.

I will make another point, which touches on the sentiment expressed by the Deputy in his comments. I have often said that the status and the state of the Reserve is a bellwether. It is an indicator generally of the health of the Defence Forces overall.

One could argue that if things are going well for the Reserve Defence Force then it is a reasonable assumption to make that throughout the other branches and echelons of the Defence Forces, things are going well also. In many ways, we are at the end of the conveyor belt. We are at the end of the list of things to be done. When Mr. Richardson talked about getting recruits through the medical checks, security clearances and all that kind of stuff, because it is dealing with the Reserve Defence Force, we get pushed to the end of the queue.

Understandably, I suppose, if Permanent Defence Force members are about to serve overseas or undertake various duties then it is essential to get them sorted out first. That is fine. We have never had a problem with that. The problem arises when we remain at the back of the queue and are never processed or do not get the resources required, ever. We do not progress from there. I would say, therefore, that it is a key indicator of how things are. If the Reserve Defence Force is doing well then one could assume that the rest of the Defence Forces are doing well.

One might look at it from the other perspective, that is, from the point of view of our colleagues in the more specialist roles. I picked the particular example of our comrades in the Army Ranger Wing, ARW. If we look at their experiences of late in trying to secure their pay and allowances and the difficulties they have had then it does not bode well for us. If they, as the tip of the spear - the very people and experts who are at the top of their profession and who are sent into the most hostile of places, including Kabul recently - have difficulties then where are we going to be? There are, therefore, two ways of looking at this. There is a continuum of expertise, if you like, and there is a continuum in a military context of where we are at. I wanted to make the point that that is a concern to us as well.

The final question then was from Senator Ó Donnghaile, which came via Deputy Brady, regarding 32-county recruitment. I am happy to take that question because, as I mentioned earlier, I am originally from County Cavan. I live in Dublin but I am posted in the 27 Infantry Battalion, which is headquartered in Dundalk. I am very proud to serve with the 27 Infantry Battalion. I can tell members that a significant number of personnel, both Permanent Defence Force and Reserve Defence Force, are from the Six Counties or from the North. They are quite happy to serve. They really want to serve and they make the journey down. It is quite surprising that some of our potential recruits have actually come from Belfast. That, I suppose, tells members something about the intent and the desire to serve that these people have. They are very keen. That is actually effectively happening already.