Billy Timmins (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Ceann Comhairle for affording me the opportunity to raise this important subject. Comments allegedly made by Omar Bakri Muhammad, a Muslim cleric, activist and publisher, were yesterday put into the public domain by the BBC. In an on-line debate, Muhammad was asked if Dublin Airport should be a target for a terrorist attack as American troops transited through the facility on the way to Iraq. He responded by saying, "Hit the target and hit it very hard".

It is symptomatic of the lack of priority given to the threat of international terrorism by the Government that the people have learned of this statement through the media channels of another European state. Our intelligence services receive a tiny amount of funding and are completely under-equipped in terms of monitoring even a fraction of the terrorism-related activity on the Internet. It is beyond time for the Government to realise that, in certain quarters, Ireland is viewed as a reasonable target for terrorist attack. As a matter of priority, we now need to put in place the structures to cope with this threat effectively, both in terms of protecting those living in the State from terrorism and ensuring that Ireland cannot be used as a staging post for an attack on another country.

While the invasion of Iraq is often quoted as justification for terrorism, we should remember that the 11 September 2001 attacks occurred before this military action took place. It is clear that a hard-line extremist element has developed which will use every tool at its disposal to radicalise predominately young men to carry out terrorist atrocities. This was, for example, the case with the London bombings in July 2005.

I do not believe that the Government has treated threats of Islamic terrorism with the importance they deserve. We cannot wait until there is an attack on Irish soil or, more likely, that Ireland is used as a base for an attack on neighbouring countries before action is taken. The Government pays scant regard to the importance of emergency planning. I have frequently called for the work of the task force on emergency planning to be underpinned through legislation and for the creation of a single emergency planning body which would report to the Taoiseach. This is in line with a recommendation from the emergency planning society made to Government in 2003, yet this recommendation has never been acted on.

Ireland's emergency response is split between a large number of Departments, State agencies and sub-groups. Emergency incidents have been simulated but we have no real information about these exercises or their findings. Even basic and common sense steps to improve security at our airports have not been progressed. Irish airports lack sniffer dogs to check for explosives. There is no visible, armed presence at our airports to act as a deterrent and to be in place to respond quickly in an emergency. Additionally, Ireland has no air marshal training programme. Given all this, it is not surprising that a survey conducted earlier this year found that 70% of the population did not believe Ireland was well-prepared to cope with a serious emergency.

This year, attacks which would have killed thousands of people engaged in transatlantic travel, including Irish citizens among their number, were foiled. However, even with these developments, the Government seems not to have realised that the tactics of international terrorists have changed. The focus now is on the body count and on attacks which maximise the loss of civilian life and strike terror into the population. The civilians in question — their nationality, political allegiance or religion — are of little importance. Look, for example, at those killed in London in July 2005. The dead represented every section of the multicultural society that exists in that city — people of all colours, religions and ethnic backgrounds.

Omar Bakri Muhammad highlighted the practice of targeting people indiscriminately when he said: "We don't make a distinction between civilians and non-civilians, innocents and non-innocents." The protection of civilians is the highest responsibility that any Government can hold. It is high time this responsibility is taken seriously. We can do this by establishing a single body, as they have in Britain, responsible for national emergency planning. This body would be under the control of the Taoiseach. We must also invest resources in our intelligence services. Currently, €800,000 is allocated to the intelligence services while we spend €3 million on the removal of graffiti. We must establish an intelligence body comprising all those that have something to bring to it. This would include the Garda, the military and the Customs and Excise service. I ask the Minister to examine the possibility of establishing such a body.

Brian Lenihan Jnr (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)
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I am replying on behalf of the Minister for Defence, Deputy O'Dea. I thank Deputy Timmins for raising this matter.

In the aftermath of the events of 11 September 2001, the Government moved quickly and decisively to respond to the international security position. Government structures were put in place to support emergency planning in Ireland and to improve co-ordination across the various existing national emergency plans. The Government task force on emergency planning was established in 2001 and is the top-level structure which gives policy and direction and co-ordinates and oversees the emergency planning activities of all Departments and public authorities. It promotes the best possible use of resources and compatibility across different planning requirements.

The Government task force on emergency planning is chaired by the Minister for Defence. It includes Ministers, senior departmental officials, senior officers of the Garda Síochána and the Defence Forces, and officials of other key public authorities which have a lead or support role in Government emergency planning. There have been 49 meetings of the task force to date. Each meeting of the Government task force has, as a standing agenda item, an assessment of the current security threat, which is provided by the Garda Síochána and the Defence Forces. The current advice available suggests that the terrorist threat to Ireland is low. The figures supplied by Deputy Timmins are not accurate. They do not take account of the considerable salaries and overheads involved in engaging intelligence and security service personnel in the Garda and the Defence Forces.

The State's response to any security alert is primarily a matter for the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform. I can confirm that the Garda Síochána, acting as our national security service, maintains an up-to-date assessment of the national threat to the State from international terrorist groups through analysis gathered from domestic and international sources. These threat assessments are furnished to the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform and to the Government at regular intervals. I can also confirm that the Garda Síochána has developed excellent lines of communication and co-operation with police forces and security services in the European Union and further afield. This ongoing sharing of intelligence enables a rapid operational response to be put in place where circumstances so warrant.

One of the roles assigned to the Defence Forces is the provision of aid to the civil power, meaning in practice to assist the Garda Síochána when requested. The various components of the Defence Forces are active in this regard, providing such assistance as is appropriate in specific circumstances. Emergency plans and procedures are updated as necessary. Such additional equipment as is needed is acquired on the basis of identified priorities. Training and preparation for such events is also provided for in the Defence Forces annual training plan.

The most important defence against any attack is, of course, vigilance, detection and prevention by the security forces. All the necessary resources of the Garda Síochána and the Defence Forces are deployed to this end. The total expended on military intelligence is not separately compiled, and it is not considered appropriate to disclose such information.

The European Union's counter-terrorism efforts are centred around implementation of the EU strategy and action plan on counter-terrorism, which also includes a strategy and action plan on radicalisation and recruitment in respect of extremist groups. Ireland, at both ministerial and official level, including in particular the Garda Síochána acting as our national security service, actively contributes to the implementation of these strategies and plans.

The Minister for Defence, as chairman of the Government task force on emergency planning, presents an annual report to the Government on emergency planning issues. This report provides a summary of the main emergency planning issues that have arisen during the year and provides an analysis of each Department's progress across a range of emergency planning areas.

The office of emergency planning was established following a Government decision in October 2001 as a joint civil-military office within the Department of Defence. The office provides a key support role to the Government task force on emergency planning. It is responsible for the co-ordination and oversight of emergency planning. The office works with Departments and other key public authorities to ensure the best possible use of resources and compatibility across different emergency planning requirements and to oversee Government emergency planning in general.

In 2006, as part of its oversight role, the office of emergency planning met with 14 Government Departments. Each of these Departments has assured the office that it is addressing its emergency planning responsibilities and has the appropriate plans and response arrangements in place to address large-scale emergencies. At all times the lead responsibility for specific emergency planning functions remains with the relevant Government Departments. When an emergency occurs, the appropriate emergency plan is set into operation with the relevant Department taking the lead in its implementation. The approach continues to be that such responses must be characterised by effective management of all aspects of emergency planning and by a high level of public confidence in all the response arrangements. The Minister for Defence is satisfied that the current legislative and funding arrangements are adequate to meet our emergency planning needs. However, the position is being kept under constant review.