Willie O'Dea (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 11 and 27 together.

The gross allocation for the Defence and Army Pensions Votes was €566 million in 1995, €789 million in 2000 and €934 million in 2005. The level of expenditure on defence in any particular country is influenced by a variety of factors, including that country's political and security environment, its history, demography and economy. While defence spending in this country has fallen as a percentage of GNP in recent years, this is not due to any reduction in the level of defence expenditure, but rather because of the massive increase in GNP.

There has been an unprecedented level of expenditure on infrastructure and equipment for the Defence Forces in recent years. This was made possible by the Government's decision that pay savings arising from the reorganisation of the Defence Forces set out in the White Paper 2000, along with proceeds from the sale of surplus properties, would be fully reallocated for investment in modern facilities and equipment. More than €192 million was spent on the capital investment programme for the upgrade of barracks, accommodation and other facilities between 1997 and the end of 2004. This year's Defence Estimate includes a further €19 million for such capital works.

Substantial progress has also been made in recent years with the acquisition of modern equipment for the Army, Air Corps and the Naval Service. During the past six years, more than €200 million has been expended on the purchase of 65 armoured personnel carriers and the Javelin missile system for the Army, new patrol vessels for the Naval Service and new trainer aircraft for the Air Corps. Last January, I signed contracts for six new helicopters for the Air Corps costing more than €60 million. Planning is well under way on the replacement programme for the next Naval Service ships to reach the end of their economic life and a further 15 armoured personnel carriers, APC, will be added to our fleet. It is expected that the contract for the additional 15 APCs will be signed by the end of the year. Further details of the re-equipment programme are contained in a reply to a later question on the Order Paper.

See this speech in context