Seymour Crawford (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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Question 20: To ask the Minister for Defence his plans to review the role of the Civil Defence; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38081/10]

Willie Penrose (Longford-Westmeath, Labour)
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Question 59: To ask the Minister for Defence the progress that has been made in the matter of increasing the membership of the Civil Defence; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38102/10]

Tony Killeen (Clare, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 20, 35 and 59 together.

The Civil Defence Board was established in 2003 and is charged with the development and management of the organisation at national level. The Board is obliged to submit its Strategic Plan for approval every three years. I launched the 3rd Strategic Plan of the Civil Defence Board covering the period 2010-2013 in June 2010.

The strategies identified by the Board place a high priority on the organisation's involvement in developing training and recruitment programmes and in the Framework for Major Emergency Management, which identifies a wider role for Civil Defence in emergency response.

In 2010, the Civil Defence Board received a grant of €6.061m, of which almost €1m is allocated to the purchase of equipment. This funding has enabled the Board to equip volunteers to a very high standard.

The Board has re-equipped all of its casualty trained volunteers with up-to-date training manuals, DVD's and instructional material, bringing the organisation into line with the statutory requirements laid down by the Pre-Hospital Emergency Care Council (PHECC).

The Civil Defence College is also a recognised certifying body for the preparation and delivery of courses approved by statutory and other national bodies such as Further Education & Training Awards (FETAC) and Irish Heart Foundation (IHF). This accreditation combined with the diverse range of training available to Volunteers is also of great assistance to them in developing career opportunities outside of Civil Defence.