Joe Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
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Question 7: To ask the Minister for Defence what efforts are being made to evolve the Defence Forces into an ethnically diverse military; his views on whether it is necessary to target recruitment from among ethnic minorities and other nationalities to acquire invaluable specialist linguistic and cultural knowledge for the Army's missions at home and abroad; if he will set a specific target for increasing the numbers of non-nationals and members of ethnic minorities to be recruited to the Defence Forces; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7169/06]

John Perry (Sligo-Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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Question 23: To ask the Minister for Defence what steps are being taken to broaden the membership of the Defence Forces and to recruit non-nationals to the Defence Forces; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7194/06]

Paul Gogarty (Dublin Mid West, Green Party)
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Question 69: To ask the Minister for Defence if the Army will follow the Garda Síochána's example by actively recruiting non-nationals; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [7483/06]

Willie O'Dea (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 7, 23 and 69 together.

Entry to the Permanent Defence Force is either through the cadetship competition, apprenticeship competition, general service enlistment or direct entry competitions that are held to fill vacancies in specialist appointments. All applicants for each of these entry streams are required to meet qualifying criteria.

The question of the recruitment of foreign nationals to the Defence Forces is not a new one. Defence Force regulations have always allowed for the recruitment of ethnic minorities and foreign nationals to the Defence Forces. However, the operational requirements of the Garda Síochána and the Defence Forces are not directly comparable. My Department is not specifically targeting the recruitment of ethnic minorities for the Defence Forces at present. Current emphasis is on ensuring that there are no barriers to ethnic minorities or foreign nationals joining the Defence Forces. I have recently made changes to the cadet competition to broaden the entry criteria, thereby making it easier for qualifying foreign nationals to apply for cadetships.

In addition the Defence Forces equality policy, which was recently produced and formalised, underpins equality legislation. The policy states that the Defence Forces are committed to the principles of equal opportunities in all employment policies, procedures and regulations and will operate in an environment without discrimination in areas provided for by the Equality Acts. The policy also ensures that the principles of employment equality are employed in recruitment, promotion, training and work experience. All regulations and administrative instructions concerning service in the Defence Forces will be set out in a manner consistent with the equal opportunity policy, which will be reviewed with the Defence Force regulations on an ongoing basis by the Deputy chief of staff — support — to ensure compliance with best practice and to maintain a working environment in which all members of the Defence Forces are treated in a manner consistent with equal opportunities.

At the moment the primary focus in recruitment is to attract people with the core competencies required by the Defence Forces. Any specialist linguistic skills or cultural knowledge requirements identified by the chief of staff can be addressed through recruitment or through personnel development. My Department and the Defence Forces are fully committed to ensuring that all who wish to join the Defence Forces, including ethnic minorities and foreign nationals, are given the opportunity to do so.

Joe Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)
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The need for the Defence Forces to encourage recruitment among non-nationals is urgent. The Minister has not given us any idea of what efforts are being made to do that. The efforts in this regard by the Defence Forces must be contrasted with those of the Garda Síochána, which has a make-up that is much more representative of modern Ireland. There is an obligation on the Defence Forces to follow suit. Will the Minister therefore increase the embryonic diversification campaign that has begun to make the Defence Forces much more ethnically representative? What practical steps is he taking in that regard.

Willie O'Dea (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)
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As I said, our emphasis at the moment is to prevent people of foreign and ethnic origin from being discriminated against when they apply to join the Defence Forces. I take Deputy Sherlock's point about the efforts being made by the Garda Síochána, but the Garda is a different type of organisation from the Defence Forces. Whereas we need gardaí who can relate to people in ethnic communities, who can speak their language and know their customs, the same considerations do not apply to the Army. If, as occasionally happens, the Army needs people with certain language skills and knowledge of certain cultures, that is an operational matter for the chief of staff. He has assured me that the Army can get all the people it needs in that regard through the ordinary recruitment process.

I take on board what the Garda has done, but the Army faces a different situation. The development of a multi-ethnic society presents challenges for us all, including the Defence Forces. For the moment, we will observe what lessons can be learned from the policies that the Garda Síochána is pursuing. However, I am advised by those who have operational charge for such matters that there is currently no need for a specific recruitment campaign to increase the percentage of non-nationals in the Army.