Willie O'Dea (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)

On the first question, I have been written to on a confidential basis and will therefore not elaborate on the suggestions that have been made. They will emerge very shortly when RACO and PDFORRA talk to the organisations in question.

I have not come across an army with no height requirement but I am aware that others have much lower height requirements than ours. I perused the list some nights ago and noted that the US Army has a height requirement of 4 ft. 11 in., and we are certainly out of line with that. The military authorities have told me they received medical advice that it is dangerous, in view of the operational requirements of Irish troops and the loads they must carry, sometimes through jungles on foreign missions, for people under 5 ft. 4 in. to be engaged in such duties. I put it to them, however, that the United Kingdom and the United States do not expect their armies to do any less than we expect ours to do. I am informed that some armies — I am not quite sure which ones — do not expect the same commitment from their female recruits as we do but I hope we can establish a suitable physical fitness test to allow us, at a minimum, to reduce the height requirement, if not abolish it.

On Deputy Timmins's last point, there has been no resistance to reducing the required height. We have received full co-operation from the Army.

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