Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

As the Minister will know, the numbers in the Defence Forces continue to fall. I understand that the current number is 8,874, which is below the threshold of 9,000 the Government indicated it would not allow the Defence Forces to fall below and which is far short of the 9,500, which was set out within the White Paper. Will the Minister clarify the role of the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform in respect of this issue? He referred to oral presentations, but I understand that the Chief of Staff made a presentation before the commission on behalf of staff and management this morning, and that he was accompanied by officials from not only the Department of Defence but also the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. We know that the latter Department was very much involved in a submission made in September by the Department of Defence and military management. Why is the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform directly involved in detailed presentations by the military and the Department of Defence?

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