Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

As the Minister is aware, this is not just a critical time for the Permanent Defence Force but for the Reserve Defence Force. Unfortunately, the personnel enlisted in the Reserve at present is the lowest ever, at only just in excess of 1,500 personnel. A significant recruitment campaign and additional resources are needed. The Reserve Defence Force, as I often put on the record of the House, is often underutilised and many times underappreciated. It stood with other agencies of the State during very difficult times, going back to the Second World War and the more recent era of the Troubles in the Border region, in particular.

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