Results 1,061-1,080 of 12,629 for speaker:Willie O'Dea

EU Battle Groups. (3 Nov 2005)

Willie O'Dea: Yes. Between 1985——

EU Battle Groups. (3 Nov 2005)

Willie O'Dea: That does not mean — if Deputy Sherlock can grasp this — that less money is being spent on the Defence Forces, it simply means that GDP has grown enormously. The Government has been spending a great deal of money on other Departments, such as the Departments of Health and Children and Social and Family Affairs, on which the Labour Party constantly calls on us to spend more. I did not know...

EU Battle Groups. (3 Nov 2005)

Willie O'Dea: ——increase expenditure on defence. In any case, the Government is increasing expenditure on defence. In 1985 and 1995, during much of which time the Deputy's party was in office, official figures show that expenditure on defence increased by 2% per annum. From 1995 to 2005, it increased by 7% per annum. Since the Government came into office, the increase in the consumer price index has...

EU Battle Groups. (3 Nov 2005)

Willie O'Dea: Surplus property, which there was no point in retaining, was sold. Was it not better to use the funds properly? I am committed to continuing the reinvestment programme which will be in place until 2010. I wish to cite one international statistic. Defence expenditure by all governments in Europe has fallen quite substantially since the collapse of the Berlin Wall. It has fallen substantially...

Commemorative Events. (3 Nov 2005)

Willie O'Dea: I would first like to outline my satisfaction and that of the Defence Forces for this commemoration of the 90th anniversary of the 1916 Easter Rising and the reintroduction of the traditional Easter military parade. The Cabinet has decided that the theme of the parade will be a celebration of Óglaigh na hÉireann, successors to the Volunteers serving a democratic State engaged, through the...

Commemorative Events. (3 Nov 2005)

Willie O'Dea: I must inquire about the second part of the Deputy's question as I do not have information in that regard. As for the first part of his question, the Deputy asked whether it was right to announce this measure at a partisan political event such as the Fianna Fáil Ard-Fheis. The Fianna Fáil Ard-Fheis, like the Labour Party Conference or the Fine Gael Ard-Fheis will always be partisan, and it...

Commemorative Events. (3 Nov 2005)

Willie O'Dea: Yes, it is a national event. The point is that in order to organise such a commemoration, the Government of the day must take the initiative. It did so——

Commemorative Events. (3 Nov 2005)

Willie O'Dea: ——and assumed that it would be widely welcomed by the Opposition, as it has been.

Commemorative Events. (3 Nov 2005)

Willie O'Dea: The Government assumed that this extremely welcome initiative would be embraced enthusiastically by the Opposition and apart from nitpicking objections to the announcement's timing and method, by and large it has been welcomed. It will be a great event and, as I told Deputy Timmins previously, it will involve members of the Irish United Nations Veterans Association and the Organisation of...

Commemorative Events. (3 Nov 2005)

Willie O'Dea: I thank Deputy Ó Snodaigh for his unqualified support for this. He is not supporting it and then pretending to be upset about how and when it was announced, which I appreciate. We are in the very early stages of preparation. There is an interdepartmental committee consisting of representatives of the Departments of Defence, Foreign Affairs and the Taoiseach and that I am sure will include a...

Commemorative Events. (3 Nov 2005)

Willie O'Dea: I would welcome constructive suggestions.

Defence Forces Remuneration. (3 Nov 2005)

Willie O'Dea: The pay to non-pay ratio for Defence Forces expenditure in 2004 was 71:29. The PricewaterhouseCoopers review of the Defence Forces recommended that, in the case of a light infantry based military structure, the balance between pay and non-pay should be 70:30. In 1995, pay accounted for approximately 80% of military expenditure, leaving only 20% for all non-pay spending. Under the White Paper...

Defence Forces Remuneration. (3 Nov 2005)

Willie O'Dea: It is my intention to keep it at that ratio because it was the ratio recommended by PricewaterhouseCoopers and is generally accepted as being the proper ratio for a military organisation of the type we have in this country. Regarding selling property, we obviously do not have much property left to sell. If income from that source dries up, we must ensure that the Minister for Finance meets...

Defence Forces Remuneration. (3 Nov 2005)

Willie O'Dea: I do not have exact information but my understanding is that, following improvements in the early 1990s, we are in line with other countries and are in a good position on the scale. I will get the information for the Deputy.

Defence Forces Recruitment. (3 Nov 2005)

Willie O'Dea: I propose to take Questions Nos. 10, 21 and 37 together. The unsatisfactory age and fitness profile of the Permanent Defence Force was commented upon by the Gleeson commission in its report in 1990. The age profile was also the subject of severe criticism by PricewaterhouseCoopers which had been engaged by the efficiency audit group, EAG, to conduct an in-depth study of the Defence Forces....

Defence Forces Recruitment. (3 Nov 2005)

Willie O'Dea: They can stay for 21 years.

Defence Forces Recruitment. (3 Nov 2005)

Willie O'Dea: It will apply to people who came into the new system on and from 1 January 1994. Anyone who is approaching the end of his or her 12 year period will, if he or she satisfies the criteria, be able to continue in service for up to nine years. We have examined the issue of recruitment raised by the Deputy. We must keep a close eye on the age profile for obvious reasons. The current average age of...

Defence Forces Recruitment. (3 Nov 2005)

Willie O'Dea: It has been the law since relevant legislation was introduced in the early 1960s. It is a part of one's contract that if one joins the Defence Forces, one must make oneself available for overseas duties. This was updated in 1993 to include the famous chapter 7 missions as only chapter 6 missions were possible until that time. Recruits must make themselves available. We are glad to say that,...

Defence Forces Recruitment. (3 Nov 2005)

Willie O'Dea: I have no idea. I am not familiar with that speech by the Chief of Staff. He did not communicate those sentiments to me. Certainly, it is the law that overseas duty is part of their duty.

Defence Forces Recruitment. (3 Nov 2005)

Willie O'Dea: There is no question that it is a very large commitment. Until I came into this job I did not realise how large it was. On the surface it appears small, as 10% of the standing Army is involved, but the Deputy mentioned rotation and two groups are in training to replace one group overseas. The idea regarding the Reserve Defence Force is good and other countries engaged in peacekeeping allow...