Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for his response and I want to refrain from going back to debates on the issue of the organisation. The Minister has set out his stall quite clearly yet members of the Defence Forces remain concerned about the implications of the implementation of the reorganisation, not least in advance of the process of the White Paper being undertaken. I was particularly concerned by the recent statement made by the outgoing president of PDFORRA, Mr. William Webb, who is not given to making outrageous statements. He told the annual conference that if the weakening of the force is noticed by dissident groups, it will pose a real and serious threat to our nation. He said that if weakening of the Defence Forces is noted by dissident groups, the same groups caught monitoring Harcourt Street Garda station recently, it would be a real problem for our nation. He appealed to the Minister and the Government to stop the madness.

His comments are particularly pertinent in light of the appalling atrocity in the north of Ireland, with the murder of the prison officer, Mr. David Black. I commend the Minister on his presence at the funeral and I commend my party leader, Deputy Micheál Martin, on making the trip to the funeral to show the solidarity of people of this country with Mr. Black, the prison service and, most importantly, with his family. It highlights the need to be absolutely certain that the force is organised so as to be able continue to do what it has done to maintain the security of the State.

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