Gerard Craughwell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank Senator O'Loughlin for bringing up the issue of the rangers. Her strong support for the Defence Forces is noted always. It is a little sad that we are talking about the Army rangers and the work they did in Afghanistan when the unit is falling apart for want of new recruits. We have a new Chief of Staff coming on board now and a new Secretary General in the Department. We also have a Minister who says he is committed to the Defence Forces and, therefore, it is my hope that we will see a tremendous improvement in the overall structures in the Defence Forces in the very near future.

The Deputy Leader, Senator Chambers, spoke yesterday about "Women of Honour", as did Senator O'Loughlin. We want a thorough investigation of the matter. We want it independently chaired by an individual from outside the Defence Forces. Every officer, non-commissioned officer and enlisted person I know is devastated because there are people within their ranks who have brought them into disrepute and because it is not known who the perpetrators are. The quicker we get the commission up and running, the better. That is a job for Major General Sean Clancy, the new Chief of Staff, as he comes in. I wish him well with that.

At the end of the summer session, I spoke about the search and rescue contract. I said it would be placed before the Cabinet as an any-other-business item at the last moment. Indeed, it has gone before the Cabinet and has been approved to go for tender. I wrote to the Minister following the approval and said we cannot go to tender while we are awaiting the outcome of the report on Rescue 116. There are three companies big enough to serve as a search and rescue operator for Ireland, one of which is CHC, the incumbent. There are serious questions that will be asked of CHC in the report on Rescue 116, which I understand is imminent. The adviser on the business case, Frazer-Nash Consultancy, is associated with another of the three companies that will tender. Really and truly, the system raises more questions than it answers. This is something this House will have to watch as it progresses. There is a maxim that once something is approved to go to tender, we should all step back from it and allow the process to go ahead but I have serious concerns about the process that has brought us to this point. I need to have that firmly on the record.

With regard to search and rescue operations, there should be no tender until we have the full outcome regarding Rescue 116. The company in question was provided with night-vision solutions for the cockpits of its helicopters almost ten years ago but those solutions have never been implemented. I am not a pilot but I believe it is reckless not to be in a position to use technology that will allow flight at night. These questions have to be answered before the tender is agreed at any stage in the near future. I will leave that with the Deputy Leader. We may need to have a debate on this.