Gerald Nash (Louth, Labour)
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Question 425: To ask the Minister for Defence if he will provide details of his plans for the future of Dun Uí Neil Barracks, County Cavan; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26310/11]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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As of now no decision has been made in relation to the future of any particular military installation. However various commissions, reports and studies back to the 1990s identified barrack closure as a fundamental requirement towards improving military effectiveness and efficiency. Since then there has been a number of consolidation programmes which has seen the number of barracks occupied by the Permanent Defence Force reduced from 34 to 23 today. The dispersal of Defence Forces personnel over an extended number of locations continues to be a major impediment to essential collective training and to releasing personnel for operational duties.

I have made it clear that I cannot give a commitment that there will not be further programmes of barrack consolidation.