Seanad debates
Wednesday, 8 February 2023
Nithe i dtosach suíonna - Commencement Matters
Defence Forces
1:00 pm
Jerry Buttimer (Fine Gael)
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The Minister of State, Deputy Richmond, is very welcome.
Joe O'Reilly (Fine Gael)
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Thank you for selecting the matter, a Chathaoirligh. I am delighted to welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Richmond. It might be one of his first occasions to visit the Seanad as a Minister of State. He is an esteemed former Member. He also has very strong ties with my county. In fact, that neatly links in to what I am going to address, in that there is a very strong tradition in County Cavan of involvement in the Reserve Defence Force, RDF. To this day, there are very active units in the county and an active set of personnel, some of whom have reached officer level. It is very much a real issue in the county.
I propose to briefly outline five preliminary background points and then I will go into the specifics of the questions arising today. It is a great outlet for young people to be in the Reserve Defence Force, and it is an important one. It instils a civic spirit and lets them progress with individual self-development. It also instils loyalty to the State and self-discipline. It provides training in myriad ways. One person said to me that he was shy and that he had benefitted significantly from the training, camaraderie and teamwork. In the current context of shortages within the military, specialists within the Reserve Defence Force can be seconded to the Permanent Defence Forces, and can provide useful services, including going abroad on missions. The RDF has many values.
Could the Minister of State inform me of the current status of the 15 Reserve Defence Force centres, excluding military barracks or military camps? Could he also confirm the locations that are not staffed between 9 a.m. and 4.30 p.m. from Monday to Friday? In other words, I want to know which centres are not staffed. The corollary of that is, if not, why not? Could he further confirm which centres are not being used and if this is in line with defence strategy. Could the Minister of State indicate the total number of training nights held per location per year in each of the 15 Reserve Defence Force training centres since 2017, excluding military barracks or military camps? I am interested in getting that specific information and also a more general statement.
Victor Boyhan (Independent)
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Before I call on the Minister of State, Deputy Richmond, I too would like to welcome him, wish him well and congratulate him on his appointment. I say well done to him.
Neale Richmond (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
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I thank both Senator Joe O'Reilly and the Acting Chair for their welcome. This is the fourth or fifth time I have been back in the Seanad in recent weeks, but it is always a pleasure and I hope to be here many more times to engage with Senator Joe O'Reilly and the Acting Chair, and Senator Gavan, who is awaiting the next Commencement matter. We all soldiered here together for a good four years.Unfortunately, the Tánaiste and Minister for Defence is unable to be here today. He has asked me to take this Commencement matter on his behalf. Senator O'Reilly knows that I have a particular interest in the Reserve Defence Force, and the Defence Forces more generally, as well as the ongoing work my Department is doing with the RDF to protect the employment status of its members. I will endeavour the questions raised by Senator as I best I can.
The military authorities have confirmed that there are 15 premises at various locations in the State that are normally used for training by the RDF. Eight of these premises are currently owned by the Department of Defence, with the remainder under lease. An additional premises in Bray, County Wicklow, is no longer in use. Four premises from 1 Brigade located at Mallow, Tralee, Ennis and Skibbereen, and seven premises from 2 Brigade, located at Mullingar, Cavan, Navan, Castlebar, Boyle, Letterkenny and Sligo, are staffed during the hours of 9 a.m. to 4.30 p.m., Monday to Friday. The remaining four premises, located at Templemore, Waterford, Clifden and Wexford, do not have a permanent staffing cohort during these hours. The premises in Ennis is currently not in use due to renovations, with training normally delivered at that centre being delivered in Galway.
In addition to training nights, premises are also used at weekends to facilitate Reserve field training days. The military authorities have confirmed that they are currently compiling statistics on the number of training nights held per location for each year from 2017 to 2022. Regrettably, the data requested could not be readily obtained in the timeframe set out for reply, but I will communicate directly with the Senator as soon as possible with that information. I can confirm that according to figures currently available, 826 Reserve personnel have completed 17,491 training days in 2022, with late applications still being processed.
I assure the Senator that the Government remains absolutely committed to the advancement of the RDF. The 2015 White Paper on Defence is quite clear that there is a continued requirement to retain and develop the Reserve. The report of the Commission on the Defence Forces, published last February, serves to reinforce that commitment. The Senator will be aware, as he mentioned it previously, that this report contains many recommendations on the future role and structure of the RDF. Two recommendations from the report have been identified as early actions. These relate to the RDF, namely, the establishment of the office of Reserve affairs and the development of a regeneration plan for the Reserve. Planning by the military authorities has commenced on establishing the office of Reserve affairs and once this is established, it will be actively involved in implementing the accepted recommendations of the commission.
The Senator may also be aware that a recruitment drive for the RDF was launched in March 2022. This was advertised across a number of media channels. Recruit liaison officers across the RDF conducted local recruitment to attract applicants for this campaign. I am advised that more than 1,000 applications were received during this window, which is very encouraging. In 2022 to the end of the year, 90 new RDF recruits were inducted into the Defence Forces and the processing of eligible applicants continues.
Joe O'Reilly (Fine Gael)
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I thank the Minister of State for his comprehensive answer, insofar as he could give one. I urge him to send me the supplementary material on training hours when he obtains it. It is an important part of the question.
It is regrettable that four centres the Minister of State identified do not have staffing from 9 a.m. to 4.30 p.m. According to the statement, the other premises are open from 9 a.m. to 4.30 p.m., and I presume that is the case.
I am pleased to hear what the Minister of State said about recruitment as it underlines the importance of the Reserve. The fact there is demand indicates that young people have buy-in and see merit in RDF. I hope a development programme will be put in place the RDF, as a very important part of our Defence Forces, will be given full support. I look forward to receiving the supplementary information, just to have a complete picture.
Neale Richmond (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael)
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I assure the Senator that he will have those figures as soon as is humanly possible, but that does not take away from the overall response. There are two other areas to underline our agreed position on this. A high-level action plan setting out the Government's response to the report of the Commission on the Defence Forces was approved and a high-level steering board, chaired by the Secretary General at the Department of the Taoiseach, has been established to oversee its implementation.An independently chaired implementation oversight group has also been established to monitor the implementation of the recommendations approved by the Government. That group has met on three occasions. These are all key parts of ensuring we have a Reserve Defence Force that continues to be viable and one that is growing and can play a much greater role not just in the daily activities of our Defence Forces but also in life more generally across the State.