Willie O'Dea (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)

There are no immediate plans to extend the retirement age of officers and other ranks in the Defence Forces. The White Paper on Defence 2000 and the earlier Defence Forces review implementation plan recommended a reduction in retirement ages in an effort to address the age profile and fitness of the Defence Forces. More recently, however, the retirement age for people recruited to the public service has been increased. Improvements in the age profile in the Defence Forces have been achieved through a programme which included early retirement packages, regular recruitment and short-term contracts.

A key element in military life is the need for personnel to maintain a level of fitness for combat readiness. There is constant need to balance this requirement with the need to retain experience and expertise, particularly at managerial level, in the Defence Forces. I will continue to monitor the needs of the Defence Forces in this area and, mindful of ongoing experiences in other areas of the public service, will introduce changes if required.

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