Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I propose to take Questions Nos. 10 and 25 together.

Deputy Smith has been very persistent with regard to the structure of our Defence Forces as it applies to the central Border region. He mentioned Cavan Barracks, Aiken Barracks and so forth. I am deeply committed to the transformation of the Defence Forces into a modern fit-for-purpose organisation to defend the State and meet the challenges of today and the future.

The Commission on the Defence Forces was established on foot of a commitment in the programme for Government and its report was published in February 2022. A significant body of work has been undertaken encompassing wide-ranging terms of reference. The commission recommended significant changes for the Defence Forces and defence provision in Ireland. It covers high-level Defence Forces structures, defence capabilities, organisation, culture and human resources, the Reserve Defence Force and funding.

We published a detailed implementation plan in November 2023, which built on the publication of the commission report itself in February 2022, together with the high-level action plan of July 2022 and the early actions update published in March 2023. There is an ambitious programme of work to move to Level of Ambition 2 by 2028 and the significant and fundamental change for the Defence Forces that will be delivered across the commission's recommendations approved by Government.

There are a number of Government-approved commission recommendations contained in the report that may affect the structure of the Defence Forces, including the recommendation that the structure of the Army be reviewed and in that context, the disposition of units across the Defence Forces may be considered. No decisions have yet been made on the future disposition or locations of Defence Forces formations, installations and personnel, even though it has been identified as an early action in the high-level action plan. I will be in discussions with my Department with a view to asking for a review of the central Border area. In the past number of years, it was felt that operational efficiencies were achieved in respect of the closure of barracks but the Deputy is raising important points that do merit consideration in terms of future Army force design.

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