Brian O'Shea (Waterford, Labour)

I take it that state of the art will be the criterion for accommodation and eating facilities on board the new vessels. The Minister of State referred to the assigned roles for the vessels. Has thought gone into enhancing their role in support of the civil authorities, for example, in intercepting illegal shipments of drugs and so on into the State? When the vessels are commissioned in 2010, will they enhance the capability of the Naval Service and the civilauthorities to deal more effectively with this issue?

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