John Gormley (Dublin South East, Green Party)

Is the Minister aware that Simon Devereaux, the deputy secretary of the Defence Forces' staff representative association, PDFORRA, expressed concern last month at the group's annual conference about the level of funding available to the Defence Forces for the battle groups? He argued that Ireland would carry out the process cheaply. Does the Minister agree with the assessment of Mr. Devereaux and does the Minister concur that the battle groups will require significant extra levels of funding if we are to have the equipment, high readiness and interoperability that is needed?

Could the Minister clarify his opinion on the triple lock mechanism? He has stated in the past that he is committed to this mechanism, as am I and the Green Party as a whole. Other parties in Opposition also concur. Will there be no change in the triple lock mechanism if we participate in battle groups? When can we expect the legislative change spoken about by the Minister?

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