Results 11,621-11,640 of 12,596 for speaker:Willie O'Dea

Written Answers — Defence Forces Equipment: Defence Forces Equipment (29 Sep 2005)

Willie O'Dea: The most important defence against any terrorist attack is detection and prevention by the security forces. While the Garda has the primary responsibility for law and order, one of the roles assigned to the Defence Forces is the provision of aid to the civil power. In practice, that means that the Defence Forces assist the Garda when requested. The various components of the Defence Forces are...

Written Answers — Civil Defence: Civil Defence (29 Sep 2005)

Willie O'Dea: The Civil Defence Act was signed into law in April 2002. The inaugural board of the Civil Defence was appointed with effect from 5 June 2002. As the board's term of office was three years, a new board was appointed in 2005. Section 11 of the Act provides that the board shall consist of at least eight but not more than 14 members who shall be appointed by the Minister for Defence; that not...

Written Answers — Defence Forces Property: Defence Forces Property (29 Sep 2005)

Willie O'Dea: I propose to take Questions Nos. 22, 27 and 34 together. I have indicated my willingness to make the facilities at St. Bricin's Military Hospital available to the public health service if the service wishes to secure access to the facilities. Representatives of the Health Service Executive and the Department of Health and Children visited the hospital to inspect its facilities earlier this...

Written Answers — Defence Forces Equipment: Defence Forces Equipment (29 Sep 2005)

Willie O'Dea: The acquisition of new equipment for the Defence Forces, including the Air Corps, continues to be a key focus of mine. In January 2005, two contracts were signed for the provision of new helicopters for the Air Corps at a cost of over €61 million. Four utility helicopters are being acquired from Bell Agusta Aerospace Company at a cost of €48.4 million, inclusive of VAT. The helicopters,...

Written Answers — Official Engagements: Official Engagements (29 Sep 2005)

Willie O'Dea: I propose to take Questions Nos. 24, 49 and 60 together. Visits to and from the chiefs of staff of armed forces of other countries are primarily a matter for the Army Chief of Staff. From time to time, courtesy calls from visiting foreign military personnel are arranged with me, subject to the demands of my schedule. The purpose of the trip to Ireland of the chairman of the joint chiefs of...

Written Answers — Ministerial Meetings: Ministerial Meetings (29 Sep 2005)

Willie O'Dea: I propose to take Questions Nos. 26 and 61 together. I last met the flag officer commanding the Naval Service and the general officer commanding the Air Corps on Monday, 25 September 2005, at the review of KFOR troops at Sarsfield Barracks in Limerick. Informal discussions of a general nature took place on that occasion. I am kept fully informed of matters relating to the Naval Service and...

Written Answers — Overseas Missions: Overseas Missions (29 Sep 2005)

Willie O'Dea: The conditions under which the Defence Forces may participate on overseas peace support operations have been made clear by the Government. The system of conditions, which has been referred to as the "triple lock", must be satisfied. I have established an interdepartmental group to examine all issues relating to our possible participation in the battlegroup concept. Among the issues being...

Written Answers — Overseas Missions: Overseas Missions (29 Sep 2005)

Willie O'Dea: I propose to take Questions Nos. 29, 38, 45, 52 and 66 together. I wish to outline the background to the rapid response elements concept, commonly referred to as battlegroups. Member states set themselves a headline goal at a meeting of the European Council in Helsinki in 1999. They agreed that by 2003, co-operating together and voluntarily, they would be able to deploy rapidly and then...

Written Answers — National Emergency Plan: National Emergency Plan (29 Sep 2005)

Willie O'Dea: The office of emergency planning was established following a Government decision in October 2001 as a joint civil and military office within the Department of Defence. The office supports the work of the Government task force on emergency planning, which I chair, and continues to work with Departments and other public authorities to ensure the best possible use of resources and compatibility...

Written Answers — Overseas Missions: Overseas Missions (29 Sep 2005)

Willie O'Dea: I propose to take Questions Nos. 31 and 47 together. A Permanent Defence Force contingent has been serving with the UN mission in Liberia, UNMIL, since December 2003. A one-year extension of the initial deployment of one year was approved by the Government in December 2004, subject to the renewal of the UN mandate and a satisfactory review of the mission. In the near future, I will bring...

Written Answers — National Security: National Security (29 Sep 2005)

Willie O'Dea: The Garda Síochána has primary responsibility for law and order. One of the roles assigned to the Defence Forces is the provision of aid to the civil power, meaning in practice to assist the Garda when requested. There are detailed procedures in place to enable the Garda to obtain the assistance of the Defence Forces in matters of law and order when they consider it necessary.

Written Answers — Overseas Development Aid: Overseas Development Aid (29 Sep 2005)

Willie O'Dea: While primary responsibility in this area lies with my colleague, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Deputy Dermot Ahern, a request for assistance from the United States of America in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina was received through the EU monitoring and information centre in Brussels. Following consideration by the military authorities it was decided to offer to supply and operate two...

Written Answers — EU Summits: EU Summits (29 Sep 2005)

Willie O'Dea: A number of informal meetings of EU defence ministers have been held in recent years. The meetings have been a useful forum for informal discussions focused on promoting dialogue between defence ministers in the context of the continued development of the European Security and Defence Policy. An informal meeting of EU defence ministers is scheduled to take place in the United Kingdom on 13...

Written Answers — National Emergency Plan: National Emergency Plan (29 Sep 2005)

Willie O'Dea: I consulted my Cabinet colleagues in April 2005 on a draft proposal to conduct a nationwide public information campaign on emergency planning. Following an assessment of the observations I received, I decided to recommend to Government that my Department should proceed with the research stage of the project. This will allow a planned and costed proposal to be put to Government later for such...

Written Answers — National Emergency Plan: National Emergency Plan (29 Sep 2005)

Willie O'Dea: I propose to take Questions Nos. 43 and 50 together. The Government task force on emergency planning has worked, since it was set up in 2001, to co-ordinate emergency planning and response arrangements across those Departments that lead and support the State's response in an emergency. The task force continues to meet on a regular basis, most recently on Tuesday, 20 September 2005. The...

Written Answers — Bullying in the Workplace: Bullying in the Workplace (29 Sep 2005)

Willie O'Dea: I propose to take Questions Nos. 46 and 54 together. Dr. Eileen Doyle and the external advisory committee presented their report, The Challenge of a Workplace, in March 2002. This independent report addressed the range of interpersonal issues within the Defence Forces. Its contents and recommendations were accepted in full. Implementation of the recommendations of the report has been one of...

Written Answers — Departmental Staff: Departmental Staff (29 Sep 2005)

Willie O'Dea: The number of civil servants serving in my Department on 1 June 1997 and on 1 June 2005 was as follows: 422 on 1 June 1997; and 386 on 1 June 2005.

Written Answers — Overseas Missions: Overseas Missions (29 Sep 2005)

Willie O'Dea: The Aceh monitoring mission, AMM, in Indonesia was launched by the European Union on 15 September 2005. The aim of the mission is to monitor the implementation of the peace agreement concluded by the Government of Indonesia and the Free Aceh Movement, GAM, on 15 August 2005. The mission is a civilian mission within the framework of the European Security and Defence Policy, ESDP. The mission...

Written Answers — Defence Forces Equipment: Defence Forces Equipment (29 Sep 2005)

Willie O'Dea: At the meeting of the steering board of the European Defence Agency on 23 May 2005, among other matters, a report was made to the board regarding developments in the European defence equipment market with specific reference to armoured fighting vehicles. The agency, having completed initial analysis of the market, reported that there were up to 23 separate programmes currently ongoing or...

Written Answers — Forcible Retirement: Forcible Retirement (29 Sep 2005)

Willie O'Dea: The individual concerned was retired, by the President, on the advice of the Government with effect from a date in June 1969. The retirement was effected pursuant to section 47(2) of the Defence Act 1954 and Paragraph 18(1)(f) of Defence Force Regulations A15, which provide that an officer may be retired "in the interests of the service". The individual initiated proceedings in the High Court...