Brian Stanley (Laois-Offaly, Sinn Fein)
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Question 52: To ask the Minister for Defence his plans to streamline the approach to emergency planning to improve this State's preparedness and capacity to cope with emergencies; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17251/11]

Robert Troy (Longford-Westmeath, Fianna Fail)
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Question 53: To ask the Minister for Defence the staffing levels in the Office of Emergency Planning; the current location of this office; the numbers of staff permanently assigned and based in the National Emergency Co-ordination Centre; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17268/11]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Question Nos. 52 and 53 together.

Emergency planning in this country is structured around the "lead Department" principle, which means that whoever is responsible for an activity in normal conditions will maintain that responsibility during a major emergency. The advantage of this approach is that the professionals, who deal with a particular sector on a daily basis, can bring their skills and expertise to bear and they can quickly identify who is best placed to provide support in an emergency situation. It is the model that is followed in many countries.

At a national level, the Government task force on emergency planning provides strategic direction and co-ordination of emergency planning. The task force, which I chair, was established after the 11 September 2001 attacks and is comprised of Ministers and/or senior officials from all Departments and key public bodies.

The task force provides a forum for keeping emergency planning high on the agenda of all Departments and it examines cross-cutting issues that impact across the Government. It is a forum for sharing information and, from time to time, experts are invited to make presentations to the task force on any emerging emergency planning issues. Regarding the streamlining of emergency planning, there is a constant review of emergency structures, practices and procedures to ensure lessons learned from emergency responses are implemented and that there is an ongoing improvement in our response to emergencies.

The Office of Emergency Planning is a joint civil-military office with a staff complement of five. The office is located at my Department's headquarters in Newbridge. The National Emergency Co-ordination Centre is located in Agriculture House, Kildare Street, Dublin. Staff are assigned and based in the National Emergency Coordination Centre during emergency activations and as required for other activities held there.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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Is it intended to have a review of the new technologies to ensure there is interoperability between the various forces, whether it is the Garda Síochána, the Army and the ambulance services? We know the Garda Síochána and the ambulance services are using the Tetra system at the moment, but I do not think the Defence Forces do so. This does not just deal with communications, but also vehicles and so on. Is that taken into account for procurement purposes by all those agencies?

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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Communications play a vital part of the response to emergencies that arise, especially communications between the different agencies in the State. This issue is kept under review by the task force, and I will ensure it is continually reviewed. One can always improve communications, but further developments in these areas are constrained by our economic circumstances.

During the course of the two recent visits, both the Defence Forces and the Garda Síochána showed how well they interact and communicate with each other on matters of high security. I have the greatest confidence in their ability to do so in the case of any emergency that may arise and which would require a joint response from both. The ambulance services and the Garda Síochána are operating on the Tetra system and there is a fully co-ordinated communications network operating between them.