Willie O'Dea (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)

I have told the Deputy my opinion, namely, that reductions in public sector pay must be applied across the board. Admittedly, they must be applied in a way such that those who can bear them most will bear them most and that there will be as little impact as possible on those who can bear them least.

I have made the point to the Minister for Finance that, because of the high turnover in the Irish military, as with any military, the moratorium has hit the Army very hard. The complement has reduced to 10,013. Nevertheless, the Army is in good shape and is well trained and well equipped. It is lean and mean and a far better organisation than it was before the White Paper was implemented. However, I am concerned by the precipitative drop in numbers, particularly over the past nine months. I made proposals to the Minister for Finance to allow me scope to recruit, not solely at the level of enlisted personnel, and also to make promotions and recognise certain people acting in positions above their rank. We have almost reached a conclusion on those deliberations. I spoke to the Minister about it as late as yesterday and today. We will have reached a conclusion before 9 December. I am conscious of the importance of the Army's role both at home and abroad. My aim in these difficult budgetary discussions is to maintain operational capability in the Army and command arrangements.

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