Peter Fitzpatrick (Louth, Independent) | Oireachtas source

On a personal note, I thank the Tánaiste for the update on Private Seán Rooney, who was killed on 14 December 2022, and for keeping the pressure on the Lebanese ministers for foreign affairs and defence and their legal department. It is very important to get justice for Private Seán Rooney, his family and his colleagues. It is also nice to note that it is a priority of this Government to look after Private Seán Rooney.

It is also important that we look after the troops on the ground. It is important they get the proper equipment and proper pay. As a former Irish soldier deployed in the 27th Battalion in Dundalk, I know the fantastic work the soldiers do. I know the fantastic training they do and the time the sacrifice away from their families. The Tánaiste mentioned earlier that the Defence Forces have been deployed in UN peacekeeping since 1958 and at present, there are 450 troops serving abroad. I plead with the Tánaiste to please look after the equipment and the money, because it is very important to get the right people in the Defence Forces.

With regard to the motion, the Defence Forces make a positive contribution to the country’s security. Yet, Ireland's vulnerability has been continually highlighted by security experts in recent times. The international security environment has changed significantly over the last year. There has been blatant disregard of international law and Europe’s collective security architecture, bringing war to the European Continent. Over the past years, Ireland has been targeted by malign activists, including the large cyberattack on our health service during the pandemic. We need to start looking at how better to defend ourselves against all sorts of hybrid threats. Beyond the operational lessons, this war has also made it clear that we need a broader, more resilient and more reactive industrial and technological base. Therefore, from the outset, it is clear that we need to work with our European counterparts, via PESCO and the European Defence Agency, in the area of security and defence; develop defence capabilities across all domains; invest in shared projects; and enhance the operational readiness and contribution to their armed forces. Such a base must help increase the readiness of European militaries and produce weapons that member states can use together, to be interoperable in the NATO framework. PESCO is focused on deepening national co-operation, closing capability gaps and ensuring greater community between countries to help avoid duplication of effort and feed the development of new multinational programmes.

One project aims to enhance EU co-operation in monitoring, securing, and defending critical seabed infrastructure against various threats, including sabotage, terrorism, and espionage. This involves developing capabilities for surveillance and response in maritime environments, as well as fostering information-sharing and co-ordination among participating countries.

The goal of the second PESCO project, the NetLogHubs, is aiming for a multinational network based on existing logistic capabilities and infrastructure. The goal is to use a network of existing logistic installations for multinational network businesses to prepare equipment for operations, to commonly use depot space for spare parts or ammunition and to harmonise transport and deployment activities. The network will decrease the reaction time and increase capacities and sustainability for military operations.

The European Defence Agency projects include a defence energy manager's course that will provide training and education on energy management and sustainability for military installations; resulting in energy consumption, cost, and CO2 emission reduction benefits. Another cyber defence exercises project will provide training for cyber defence experts and strengthen co-operation in cyber defence education, training and exercises.

Ireland is vulnerable in the area of security and defence as we strive to address the capability, staffing and structural gaps in Ireland’s armed forces. It is essential that the Defence Forces recruit, retain, and develop for the future, skilled personnel and key specialists. A vital element of this will be the regeneration and development of relations with the EU. These projects will develop defence capacity across all domains, which is significantly needed to reduce our vulnerabilities.

For the last number of years I have asked the Tánaiste to increase the age limit for soldiers and in fairness, he has done that. We have very specialist people in the Army we cannot afford to lose. I was approached numerous times in my constituency office over the last number of years by members of the 27th Battalion, who were young people who wanted to participate. This is a vocation and these people, whether trained in weapons or transport, are vital people.

We need to increase the number of recruits. Numbers in the Army are at an all-time low. Speaking to a lot of people in the area, a lot of them would like to join the Army but in order to join they would have to be making a kind of living as well. I will not go down the road of the cost of living and everything else but for someone to join the Army nowadays with the money being so low they would never to be able to get a mortgage.

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