Jimmy Deenihan (Kerry North, Fine Gael)

Does the Minister agree it is unacceptable to provide a closure date of 31 January 2009? Will he assure the House that the 14 week lead-in period will be extended? Perhaps the Government will make another U-turn on this issue. The Minister stood alongside Deputy Peter Kelly in front of Longford barracks and gave a commitment to the personnel in the barracks and the people of the town that the barracks would not be closed while he was Minister for Defence. This commitment was given on record and a photograph of the Minister and the Deputy is available. The programme should be implemented in a calm, collected, structured fashion, which is not the case. I appeal to the Minister to undertake to postpone the closure of the barracks from 31 January 2009 and extend the lead-in period to between six months and one year.

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