Jimmy Deenihan (Kerry North, Fine Gael)

The Minister's establishment figure for the strength of the Defence Forces was 10,500 and already the figure has fallen to 10,000. If this trend continues it could fall to 9,500 by the end of 2010. The Minister will accept that there is a brain drain and generally the command structure will be damaged. There are now positions of command that are not filled, which could lead to confusion and, further down the road, a threat to lives on overseas missions. I welcome the Minister's comments on promotions, because people were leaving the Defence Forces for that reason. There is a leave of absence scheme for the public service at the moment, but that does not apply to the Army. People are certainly very annoyed because it does not apply to them.

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