Cormac Devlin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

161. To ask the Taoiseach and Minister for Defence when the Naval Service’s two new inshore patrol vessels, LÉ Aoibhinn and LÉ Gobnait, will enter service; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17726/25]

Noel McCarthy (Cork East, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

168. To ask the Taoiseach and Minister for Defence to outline the Naval Service’s current fleet complement; the number of ships that are fully crewed and at sea; his Department’s plans for the further upgrading of the fleet; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18005/25]

Séamus McGrath (Cork South-Central, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

184. To ask the Taoiseach and Minister for Defence the number of naval vessels in the ownership of the Naval Service; and the number currently in active operation-deployment. [17827/25]

Peadar Tóibín (Meath West, Aontú)
Link to this: Individually | In context

188. To ask the Taoiseach and Minister for Defence the number of Naval Service ships in day-to-day use; the number docked due to understaffing; and the current location of these ships. [17270/25]

Cormac Devlin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Last October the then Tánaiste and Minister for Defence, Deputy Micheál Martin, approved the berthing of the newly refurbished and purchased inshore patrol vessels, the LÉ Aoibhinn and the LÉ Gobnait, at Dún Laoghaire Harbour. Will the Tánaiste update the House on the timeline for these vessels being fully commissioned and fully operational, and the current status on discussions between his Department and Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council regarding the berthing and their long-term presence in the harbour?

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I propose to take Questions Nos. 161, 168, 184 and 188 together.

The Naval Service currently has a fleet of eight commissioned vessels. These eight vessels consist of two P50 class large patrol vessels, four P60 class offshore patrol vessels, and two P70 inshore patrol vessels. The military authorities have advised that three of the P60 class offshore patrol vessels are currently available for operations and conduct patrols on a rotation basis. The fourth P60 vessel is currently undergoing a planned maintenance period. The LÉ Aoibhinn is fully operational and is regularly deployed on maritime defence and security operations within Irish territorial waters and the Irish exclusive economic zone, primarily along the east coast.

Taken together, this entails that at the moment there are two vessels actively operational at sea. The two P50 class vessels, the LÉ Róisín and the and LÉ Niamh are currently in operational reserve on the recommendation of the Naval Service.

Deputies will be aware of the challenges facing the Naval Service in recent years, namely around recruitment and retention. To that end, I am pleased to say that we have recently seen a positive uptake in the numbers of new recruits joining the Naval Service. This upturn, in my view, is attributable to a range of measures, including the doubling of the patrol duty allowance, which took effect in January 2024. The effect has been that no patrol days have been cancelled or lost during 2024 or to date in 2025. A total of 97 personnel were inducted into the Naval Service in 2024 consisting of 80 general service recruits, 13 cadets, two re-enlisted personnel, one direct entry electrical artificer, and one direct entry chef. To date in 2025, a further 37 personnel have been inducted into training in the Naval Service and the most recent strength figure available as of 9 April is 745 wholetime equivalent personnel, of an agreed establishment strength of 1,094.

In addition, we have invested heavily in improving the building infrastructure at Haulbowline, particularly focusing on improving the accommodation provided to serving personnel when on duty. To date, €13.5 million has been invested in providing additional accommodation. Since the inception of the Defence Forces infrastructure development plan €18.5 million has been invested in various projects across the naval base.

Extensive work is ongoing to oversee a turnaround in the level of operational activity by our Naval Service and to this end I instructed a team consisting senior military officers, led by our Chief of Staff, and my senior officials to conduct a detailed workshop with the Naval Service. We need an action plan now for the Naval Service. On foot of this three-day workshop, conducted in March, a detailed report from the military authorities is being prepared to include courses of action to increase the numbers of ships at sea.

With regard to contact with Dún Laoghaire, I do not have the most up-to-date information on that but I know how important the issue is to Dún Laoghaire. Having a presence on the east coast of Ireland, and particularly in Dún Laoghaire, is an issue of concern for Deputy Devlin, and I see great wisdom in it too.

Cormac Devlin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I thank the Tánaiste for his reply. The strategic positioning of those inland patrol vessels in Dún Laoghaire would allow for increased patrol and coverage, particularly along the eastern and south-eastern coast, and would help address the ongoing pressures the Naval Service is experiencing. I raised this matter consistently in the last Dáil with the Tánaiste's predecessors. Until the former flagship, the LÉ Eithne was decommissioned it had been twinned with Dún Laoghaire throughout her long and distinguished career. I now formally request that the Government consider one, or ideally both, of the new vessels be twinned with Dún Laoghaire Harbour again. This will not only continue a proud, local naval tradition but will also help to cement the harbour's future role as a permanent hub for the Naval Service. This is something the town and the wider hinterland would be very eager to support. I would appreciate a commitment to keep me briefed on this matter as it progresses.

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I will indeed keep the Deputy briefed on this matter. I am very happy to visit the harbour in Dún Laoghaire with him and Oireachtas colleagues. I know this is an issue of real interest to people in Dún Laoghaire, to the people on the east coast, and to the Naval Service. In addition to the operational benefits this could well bring, there is also a secondary benefit, which is the visibility of the Naval Service to the young men and women on the east coast who may wish to join and be recruited. There is a very proud tradition, of which we should be rightly proud, of the Naval Service in Cork as our national Naval Service presence in Cork. We are very proud of that and we are investing more in that. Imagine the benefit if the service also had a visibility and a presence on the east coast in somewhere like Dún Laoghaire. Let me talk further to the Chief of Staff and to officials in my Department and we can arrange a follow up discussion on this shortly.

Noel McCarthy (Cork East, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Will the Minister for Defence outline the Naval Service current fleet complement, the number of ships that are fully crewed and at sea, and his Department's plans for further upgrading of the fleet? Will he please make a statement on the matter?

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I thank my colleague, Deputy Noel McCarthy, and I thank him for inviting me to Haulbowline, which he has done for a number of weeks. I very much look forward to visiting it with Deputy McCarthy and with colleagues in Cork because I am pleased to say we are investing heavily in improving the building infrastructure at Haulbowline. We have had a particular focus in recent years on trying to improve the accommodation to support our serving personnel while on duty. We have spent €13.5 million so far in providing additional accommodation. Since the inception of our development plan €18.5 million has been invested in various projects across the Haulbowline naval base as well. My senior officials, the incumbent Chief of Staff and others were down there recently for that three-day workshop to see what more we can do to support the Naval Service.

In direct answer to the Deputy's question, on 9 April 2025 there were 745 wholetime equivalent personnel within the Naval Service. I am pleased to see an uptick in the number of people now signing up. New recruits joining the Naval Service is much needed and requires constant attention.

Noel McCarthy (Cork East, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I thank the Tánaiste for his response. I have huge respect for the Naval Service and the job it does. I have family members directly involved in the service. I was pleased to see the significant increase in funding provided to the Defence Forces in the last budget. I particularly welcome the Commission on the Defence Forces' recommendation of an accelerated programme of naval vessel replacement. In reference to this, how many of the current fleet have completed a mid-life extension programme to date, and how many are proposed to undergo such a programme in the future?

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I thank the Deputy. I know that he and his family have a proud family history of serving our State through the Naval Service. I thank them and all families across our country who have proud traditions with Óglaigh na hÉireann. I welcome the fact we now have the largest Defence Forces budget that we have ever had in our country, but we have a long way to go in terms of investing in the capabilities we need, and in particular having a better understanding of what happens up in our skies and below our seas. Debate in this House often gets drawn down an alleyway into one about military neutrality. We have no plans to change military neutrality but that is not an excuse or a cop out for not properly investing in our national security.

On the Deputy's specific question on mid-life extensions, I will ask the Defence Forces for the latest information on that.

I will provide that to the Deputy in writing.

Séamus McGrath (Cork South-Central, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I thank the Tánaiste for his presence today.

Much of what I was intending to ask has already been discussed with regard to the number of vessels at the disposal of the Naval Service, the number in actual deployment and the number we are capable of resourcing and staffing to commission them into deployment. I am very fortunate to live within a couple of miles of the Naval Service HQ in Haulbowline and to represent the area nearby, and we are very proud of the great work that the Naval Service has done and is doing. As the Tánaiste has said a number of times during this discussion, the importance of defence is an area that is increasingly becoming important for us as a nation. We all know the great work that the Naval Service does in protecting our territorial waters. My key question relates to the number of vessels available, the staffing requirements and where exactly we stand with regard to being able to deploy those vessels on a day-to-day basis.

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Deputy McGrath knows from his own community and constituency the importance of the pride within which the Naval Service is held across our country, particularly in the part of the country where he lives because people are so familiar with the service there. I look forward to visiting Haulbowline with him in the time ahead. The Naval Service currently has a fleet of eight commissioned vehicles: two P50-class large patrol vessels, four P60-class offshore patrol vessels and two P70 inshore patrol vessels. The military authorities have advised me that three of the P60 class are currently available for operations, and they are conducting patrols on a rotation basis. The fourth vessel is currently undergoing planned maintenance. Basically, it means there are approximately two vessels actively operational at sea at any time. The big thing we need to do for our Naval Service in addition to getting more ships at sea is to provide sonar capability. As the Deputy knows, we hear about suspicious ships from time to time near the part of the country where he lives. Having that sonar capability, as well as our radar capabilities, would make a real difference to the security of the State.

Séamus McGrath (Cork South-Central, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I welcome the Tánaiste's response. As I outlined earlier in terms of the importance of defence and protecting our territorial waters, the role of the Naval Service has expanded quite a lot in recent years in terms of maritime surveillance, protecting our marine assets, deterring criminal activity and smuggling and so on. It is welcome that we have a number of vessels at our disposal. I heard earlier that the direction of travel regarding recruitment and so on seems very positive, even though we are a bit short in terms of our overall headcount. The priority this Government is giving defence is very welcome, and I welcome the Tánaiste's role in that. I ask that he continues to prioritise defence, particularly the Naval Service, as we are an island nation and it is critically important for us.

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

The Deputy is right. We have to invest more in defence. In fairness, a lot of work was done, much of it by my predecessor, the Taoiseach, in terms of the Commission on the Future of the Defence Forces. That was a very helpful and important piece of infrastructure. What we do not need to do, however, is every time we try to spend some money on defence, everybody asks about funding for another Department. We do not do that with regard to anything else. If somebody says we are giving more money to the Department of education, people do not ask about the Department of Health. Yet, any time we talk about spending more on national security, people ask why we are not putting more money into every other public service. National security is not just something that is nice to have. It is really important. If, God forbid, we did not invest more in this and did not have the capabilities and something happened off our seas or in our skies, we would be facing more difficult questions in terms of why we did not make those investment decisions. We are in a good place. We have a long way to go, as the Deputy rightly said, to get to where we need to be in terms of the numbers of people in Óglaigh na hÉireann. It is all a jigsaw and is interlinked; if people start to see more investment, increased capability, more operations and the likes, it makes the Defence Forces more attractive. The reverse is also true. We need to get all the pieces of the jigsaw together.

Cormac Devlin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I thank the Tánaiste for his response. Will the items we discussed today, namely, the commissioning, operational timelines, berthing arrangements and twinning with Dún Laoghaire, be actively considered? Will his officials engage directly with me on the next steps?

I express my own gratitude to the men and women of our Defence Forces for their continued service and bravery, both at home and abroad. Given today is the 75th anniversary for our Civil Defence, I congratulate it on its service here in Ireland.

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

My officials and I will keep in close contact with the Deputy on those issues as well. I thank him for his words of tribute to members of the Defence Forces. I am very conscious that, this week, men and women who have served in the 125th battalion in Lebanon are beginning to return home. I was in Renmore Barracks, where the 126th battalion is getting ready to be deployed to Lebanon. I met very excited soldiers, and sometimes nervous mothers, grannies, wives, husbands and children worried about their relative being away from the family. The sacrifices that the men and women of Óglaigh na hÉireann and military families make is something we should rightly pay tribute to and acknowledge. The Civil Defence in the Deputy's own community, my community and across the country makes an incredible contribution. On its 75th anniversary, Deputy Devlin is so right to rise and pay tribute to it today, and I join him in that.