Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for his comprehensive report. I believe he would join with me in commending the explosive ordnance disposal teams of the Defence Forces on their outstanding courage and bravery, as well as their technical ability as outlined by the Minister. I presume that in recent days those teams have been standing by.

The Minister has mentioned what the teams deal with and in my constituency in the past couple of months, the EODs were called to a number of suspect devices by An Garda Síochána. Is the Minister happy that the resources available to EODs are sufficient? In Fort Lee in Virginia in the US, there is a 40 week course for engineers in the area. Is the Minister satisfied with the level of technical education available to our very brave soldiers in the area? Is the Minister aware of the number of personnel involved in teams?

The terrible Boston tragedy some months ago reminded us how terrible these kinds of dastardly events can be, as well as the kind of harm that can be done to the public. Is the Minister concerned by reports indicating a number of Internet sites - he has already mentioned cybersecurity - where bomb-making materials and expertise is evident? Does the Minister have any plans, in conjunction with other EU defence Ministers, to address the problem?

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