Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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123. To ask the Minister for Defence if he will provide an update of the work of Irish troops who are deployed with a task force to help in the fight against Ebola in Sierra Leone, the work they are undertaking, when they will finish this tour of duty and if they will be replaced by a new group of troops when they finish. [11665/15]

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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I have tabled this question to seek an update on the commendable work of all Irish soldiers serving in Sierra Leone and assisting in tackling Ebola. They volunteered for this difficult and challenging tour and left Ireland earlier this year to fight the worst outbreak yet of Ebola which has claimed over 10,000 lives or more. What work have they been doing? When are they due back and will a further detachment be sent to finish or continue their work?

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Deputy for asking this question as it gives me an opportunity to thank the members of the Permanent Defence Force involved in this important contribution towards the fight against Ebola. To assist in Ireland's response to the Ebola crisis in west Africa, five Defence Forces medical personnel have been deployed to Sierra Leone for a four month period to participate in the wider international response to the crisis. Irish personnel are part of a UK-led joint inter agency task force tackling Ebola in the region. The Irish personnel arrived in Sierra Leone on 17 January following pre-deployment training in the United Kingdom. 

The Defence Forces team is working in conjunction with UK military medical personnel at the Kerrytown Ebola treatment centre, just south of the capital Freetown, and at a medical facility at the international security advisory team camp in Freetown. This facility also provides medical force protection for UK and Irish personnel in Sierra Leone. Irish personnel are not engaged in the direct treatment of Ebola victims but continue to provide a supporting role for front-line workers who are so engaged.

In May 2015 it is planned to rotate the Defence Forces team that is due to return to Ireland at the end of its rotation.

The Defence Forces medical team comprises highly trained personnel who are making a tangible contribution in assisting in the control of the spread of this disease. Participating as part of the larger British military medical effort is an effective means to optimise the contribution of the Defence Forces which is going some way in assisting efforts to fight against the spread of this deadly virus. Under the emergency civilian assistance team, ECAT initiative, Defence Forces personnel have also been deployed to Sierra Leone to assist the Irish embassy in responding to the Ebola virus crisis. Two Defence Forces personnel are primarily providing security and operational management in the embassy and this has been very well received by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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This is one question on which we can all agree. Is it intended to increase the detachment even though the UN Ebola virus mission is suggesting that the outbreak may be over by August? The Minister mentioned that the next detachment is going out in May. It may be important to consider increasing the number of personnel, given that there may be other outbreaks in the future. In what way will the Defence Forces benefit from the experiences of the seven personnel who are currently in Sierra Leone to ensure that the Irish Defence Forces have gained the best possible knowledge in the event of them having to work in other outbreaks in the future?

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Deputy for his recognition of the significant work which they volunteered to do. I have huge time for the personnel who have volunteered to be part of the mission. This is a new mission on a number of levels. For example, it is very much part of the UK mission in that this is the first time our medical people have slotted into a UK-managed mission. I was anxious for our Defence Forces to contribute medical, logistics and management expertise to the anti-Ebola virus efforts in West Africa. We could not afford to put a full mission together ourselves because of the cost and the resources required. The obvious way to be of assistance was to slot in with a larger country which had a big footprint on the ground. The UK has medivac capabilities, hospitals and isolation facilities. We do not have any plans to increase the number of personnel even though I think the UK would like us to send more personnel because it has been a very successful project to date and the UK is very happy with the level of training and approach of our Permanent Defence Force. We are somewhat limited in terms of overall resources and human resources, especially in the medical area. We plan to keep the number of personnel at five but there will be a rotation of personnel in May. The Deputy suggests that this problem might be over by August; the increase in the spread of Ebola virus will be over by August but there is a lot of management yet in this crisis before we will be able to say that a country like Sierra Leone is free of the virus.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)
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I understand the limitations in terms of medical personnel but I was suggesting that additional support staff might gain other experiences which may be useful to us in other humanitarian responses in the future. Are the troops in Sierra Leone being given the anti-malaria drug, Lariam? Is it being used across the whole mission or are some people being given the other drug, Malarone instead of Lariam?

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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Lariam is still used across the Defence Forces, although I am not sure if Defence Forces personnel in Sierra Leone are using that product or other products. The Defence Forces only use drugs that are approved by the Medical Council. As I am not a doctor, I take the advice of doctors as to the appropriate drugs for use as protection against malaria for troops. While the personnel in Sierra Leone are probably using Lariam, it would not surprise me if they were using Malarone, as both drugs are now used to good effect in the Defence Forces. While some people have expressed concern about the use of Lariam and the drug's side effects, in general it is being used to very good effect in the Defence Forces, especially in Africa.