Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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Question 65: To ask the Minister for Defence the progress made in the civilianisation of the Defence Forces arising from the pay agreement and modernisation agenda agreed with the Defence Forces representative associations in the context of the Towards 2016 Partnership Agreement; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35894/08]

Willie O'Dea (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)
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The White Paper on Defence (2000) covers the potential benefits of civilianisation and contracting out of certain military posts. It recognises that civilianisation could "..release personnel for operational duties for which they are specifically trained". It could release them "from essentially administrative and other tasks which can more appropriately be undertaken by civilians."

It further states that "The argument for civilianisation and contracting out is that it is generally more cost effective." The White Paper also recognises that there may be additional benefits such as enhancing continuity in certain appointments which can be lacking due to the frequent transfer of military personnel.

The Review of Implementation of the White Paper on Defence was published in April 2007. The Review emphasised that the primary objective of civilianisation centres on releasing soldiers for operational duties and increasing the operational capacity of the Defence Forces. The Review recommended further civil/military exploration of options for civilianisation.

Subsequent to the publication of the Review of Implementation of the White Paper, civilianisation was incorporated into the "Pay Agreement and Modernisation Agenda" agreed with the Defence Forces Representative Associations in the context of the Towards 2016 Partnership Agreement.

My Department has engaged in discussions with the military authorities to identify military posts that may be suitable for contracting out and civilianisation. As I have previously outlined, this work requires careful consideration of the costs and benefits arising from the civilianisation of any identified posts and assessing the feasibility of any such proposals, with particular reference to resource constraints.

In light of the Government decision requiring pay savings across all elements of the Defence organisation, further action on civilianisation has been deferred for the present.