Seán Kyne (Galway West, Fine Gael)
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30. To ask the Minister for Defence the current strength of the Permanent Defence Forces across the three main services; if there are plans to recruit new members; if so, the number of personnel to be recruited and when it is envisaged that recruitment will commence. [34553/14]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The Government is committed to maintaining the stabilised strength of the Permanent Defence Force at 9,500 personnel, comprising of 7,520 Army, 886 Air Corps and 1,094 Naval Service.I am advised by the Military Authorities that the strength of the Permanent Defence Force, at 31 July 2014, the latest date for which details are available, was 9,019, comprising, 7,270 Army, 755 Air Corps and 994 Naval Service personnel.

Targeted recruitment has been, and is currently, taking place so as to maintain the level of 9,500 personnel and to ensure the ongoing deployable capacity of the Defence Forces on operations. To this end, a new General Service Recruitment competition was launched in March 2014. Recruitment from the panels established under this competition commenced on 18 August, 2014. Of the 254 Recruits enlisted to the Permanent Defence Force (both Army and Navy) since then 236 remain in training. These are additional to the 9,019 personnel serving at the end of July 2014. The Defence Forces plan to enlist an additional 160 Recruits by the end of this year. It is also planned to award 39 Cadetships and to recruit up to 20 Apprentice Aircraft Technicians to the Air Corps.

Targeted General Service recruitment will continue in 2015 from the recruitment panels formed from the current competition. It is planned that these panels will remain in place until they are exhausted in 2015 .

With the support of the Chief of Staff and within the resources available, I intend to retain the capacity of the Defence Forces to operate effectively across all roles and to undertake the tasks laid down by Government both at home and overseas.