Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal North East, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

PDFORRA represents the overwhelming majority of our Defence Force personnel. It is important we take its analysis seriously, in particular the quotations of its general secretaries and outgoing presidents, some of which Deputy Ó Fearghaíl has already highlighted.

In recent years, the Army barracks in Mullingar, Castlebar, Cavan, Lifford, Letterkenny and Longford have been closed, which has sapped the morale of the Defence Forces personnel in terms of their having to relocate and the impact of this on their families. It is stated in a media report today that 56 2nd field engineers, who are also known as the searchers who assist the Garda Síochána in dealing with gangland and gun crime, are being relocated to Athlone, as a result of which their response time will be quadrupled. Members of this House who represent areas wherein the Defence Forces are based will have received representations on this issue.

Morale in the Defence Forces has been sapped, not alone by this Government but by the process, over the past couple of years. I had the honour last week of visiting Collins barracks in Cork with other members of the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality where I saw first-hand the professionalism and commitment of our Defence Forces. While there we were taken out on the L.E. Ciara by the naval force, the personnel of which are visionary, professional, innovative and dynamic. We must let our Defence Force personnel know that we value the role which they play and will try not to turn their lives up-side-down, in terms of retraining, forced relocation - that is what is happening whether we like it or not - barracks closures and so on. The Minister cannot offer a blanket defence all of the time to what we are hearing from the people on the front line.

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