Results 11,521-11,540 of 12,596 for speaker:Willie O'Dea

EU Battle Groups. (3 Nov 2005)

Willie O'Dea: A battle group is defined as the minimum military effective, credible, rapidly deployable, coherent force package capable of stand-alone operations or for the initial phase of larger operations. As Deputy Timmins has rightly noted, the name is a misnomer and they should be called peace brigades. The intention of forming battle groups is that in some cases, because it would take several months...

EU Battle Groups. (3 Nov 2005)

Willie O'Dea: ——thousands of people could be killed in the meantime. Members should consider what happened in the Balkans and in Rwanda. In a similar situation, one needs, as Deputy Gormley is aware, to be able to deploy a temporary force quickly to prevent something catastrophic from happening.

EU Battle Groups. (3 Nov 2005)

Willie O'Dea: Yes. Almost invariably, it will be followed by the bigger traditional type of peacekeeping force. As I stated previously with respect to equipment, I have made it clear to my fellow Ministers for Defence of those countries which will participate in battle groups that if Ireland is to participate in battle groups, they will be obliged to take us as they find us. I have made the point that we...

EU Battle Groups. (3 Nov 2005)

Willie O'Dea: Yes they are, because apparently unlike some Members, they realise that the intention of battle groups is not to go to war. Battle groups will participate in Petersberg Tasks, which include, as Deputy Ó Snodaigh stated, missions up to and including chapter 7, or peacemaking, missions. That has been decided. Liberia is a chapter 7 mission. When we deployed troops to Liberia, several Members...

EU Battle Groups. (3 Nov 2005)

Willie O'Dea: I meet individual members of the Defence Forces as I go around the country and morale is extremely high. This is partially due to the unprecedented amount of money invested in the Defence Forces in recent years.

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....