Results 7,981-8,000 of 12,593 for speaker:Willie O'Dea

Ministerial Transport. (19 Nov 2009)

Willie O'Dea: We continue to consider all options. The Government jets are not used only for ministerial transport. They are also used in air ambulance missions, for example, the latest figures available to me for 2008 show that the Air Corps completed six search and rescue missions and 87 air ambulance missions, which is significant. The initial figures I have received for 2009 show that those figures...

Ministerial Transport. (19 Nov 2009)

Willie O'Dea: To my knowledge that has not been considered.

Ministerial Transport. (19 Nov 2009)

Willie O'Dea: Maybe now that the Deputy has mentioned it.

Defence Forces Deployment. (19 Nov 2009)

Willie O'Dea: The concern felt by the nation at the news of the capture of Ms Sharon Commins and her colleague Hilda Kawuki by rebels in Sudan in July of this year was mirrored in equal amounts by the joy felt on their release in October. My colleague, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, when considering the range of options open to him to bring this matter to a safe conclusion, requested the assistance of...

Defence Forces Deployment. (19 Nov 2009)

Willie O'Dea: The Defence Forces played a crucial role in this matter and the Minister for Foreign Affairs and his Department have communicated their appreciation of that. We are always available to assist in any way we can when called upon to do so.

Defence Forces Deployment. (19 Nov 2009)

Willie O'Dea: An article appeared in the Irish Mail on Sunday on 27 September 2009 stating members of the Army Ranger Wing were on the ground in Sudan as part of the Government's efforts to free Ms Commins. On 25 September in response to queries received from a journalist on the previous day, 24 September, representing that newspaper, the journalist was advised specifically, unambiguously and...

Army Barracks. (19 Nov 2009)

Willie O'Dea: The Government decided on 1 July 2003 that the former Magee Barracks in Kildare town would be among the State lands released to Kildare County Council for inclusion in the sustaining progress affordable housing initiative. My Department has been involved in the process of transferring ownership to Kildare County Council with the final contract of sale being sent to the solicitors for Kildare...

Army Barracks. (19 Nov 2009)

Willie O'Dea: The difficulty is that the Department was meant to hand this site over to Kildare County Council, which would be responsible for it. It has decided - or is on the point of doing so - not to proceed to take legal delivery of the site and to hand it back to the Department. I have already given an instruction to my Department to take the appropriate measures to cleaning up the site and securing...

Overseas Missions. (19 Nov 2009)

Willie O'Dea: I offer Deputy Deenihan my sincere condolences on his recent bereavement. Despite the current difficult economic circumstances, the Government continues to support and commit resources and personnel, wherever it can, to support peace, security and development in troublespots throughout the world. Following on from Ireland's participation in the EU-led mission to Chad, the mandate of which...

Overseas Missions. (19 Nov 2009)

Willie O'Dea: It is not that I do not want to be specific. I wish I could be but, as Deputy Deenihan will be aware, we are engaged in a very difficult Estimates process leading to the production of a budget on 9 December. With regard to the viability of the mission in the absence of Irish troops, it is true that the authorised maximum number of personnel for MINURCAT is approximately 5,200. There are...

Overseas Missions. (19 Nov 2009)

Willie O'Dea: Yes. I reassure the House that, because of the good work being done and the expertise being gained by the Irish troops, it is my preference that we continue in Chad. I am doing everything possible in the course of negotiations on the budget to ensure this outcome. However, I cannot give the House an absolute assurance.

Overseas Missions. (19 Nov 2009)

Willie O'Dea: I am aware of the views of the locals the mission is designed to serve. I am very conscious that the NGOs and UN personnel would all love to see the Irish stay. There is a level-one medical facility in the Irish camp at Goz Beida and a level-two medical facility in Abeche. There is a dedicated Medevac helicopter located in Abeche on a 24-seven basis and there is a couple based in Goz Beida....

Departmental Expenditure. (19 Nov 2009)

Willie O'Dea: The Defence Forces have improved in every respect since 2000 through the implementation of the White Paper. This represents a significant public service success story and has been acknowledged by both the Taoiseach and myself. Arising from the White Paper on Defence, we have created modern, well-equipped Defence Forces capable of meeting the needs of the Government and the public and...

Departmental Expenditure. (19 Nov 2009)

Willie O'Dea: I have told the Deputy my opinion, namely, that reductions in public sector pay must be applied across the board. Admittedly, they must be applied in a way such that those who can bear them most will bear them most and that there will be as little impact as possible on those who can bear them least. I have made the point to the Minister for Finance that, because of the high turnover in the...

Departmental Expenditure. (19 Nov 2009)

Willie O'Dea: No, I said that we have almost concluded our deliberations. We have until just before the budget and we will have reached a conclusion before then. I agree with Deputy O'Shea that the Defence Force is the only public sector organisation in the country where numbers have fallen in the past ten years. I have pointed that out to my Government colleagues and I am putting forward that as a...

Defence Forces Recruitment. (19 Nov 2009)

Willie O'Dea: The White Paper on Defence of February 2000 sets out a figure of 10,500 personnel for the Permanent Defence Force comprising 930 for the Air Corps, 1,144 for the Naval Service and 8,426 for the Army. I am advised by the military authorities that the strength of the Permanent Defence Force as at 31 October 2009 was 10, 013 broken down as follows: 807 for the Air Corps, 1,031 for the Naval...

Defence Forces Recruitment. (19 Nov 2009)

Willie O'Dea: I am aware of the difficulties the moratorium is causing, not just in the Defence Forces but in other parts of the public sector. It is a necessary measure to bring the public finances back into order, which everyone agrees should be done. The moratorium has hit the Army particularly hard because there is a high level of turnover in any military organisation. The problems adverted to by...

Defence Forces Recruitment. (19 Nov 2009)

Willie O'Dea: I am advised by the Chief of Staff and the Army command that the Army remains fit for purpose for whatever duties might be assigned to it either at home or abroad.

Defence Forces Equipment. (19 Nov 2009)

Willie O'Dea: The primary responsibility for the maintenance of law and order rests with the Garda Síochána. The Defence Forces, pursuant to their role of rendering aid to the civil power, assist the gardaí as required in a range of duties, which include the provision of troops for cash escorts, prison escorts and the provision of military guards at a number of vital installations. As part of the aid...

Defence Forces Equipment. (19 Nov 2009)

Willie O'Dea: The Army has two roles domestically - aid to the civil power, which we have been discussing, and aid to the civil authority, which means the Army can be called in in the event of an emergency. The emergency planning committee meets approximately once every month or six weeks; a meeting is due to take place in the next week or so. The last meeting was three or four weeks ago. There are...