Written answers

Thursday, 16 July 2015

Department of Defence

Defence Forces Recruitment

Photo of Seán Ó FearghaílSeán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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345. To ask the Minister for Defence the number of additional recruits the Defence Forces have recruited in 2015 to date; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29879/15]

Photo of Simon CoveneySimon 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. As the Permanent Defence Force is currently below the agreed stabilised strength of 9,500, targeted recruitment has taken place from the panels formed from the current General Service recruitment competition, launched in March 2014. I am informed by the Military Authorities that further recruitment to the Permanent Defence Force will commence later this month, drawing on the remaining successful candidates from the 2014 recruitment competition. In addition, a recruitment competition for General Service Recruits for the Naval Service was launched on 6 March 2015. The selection process for this competition is progressing and it is planned to recruit 40 personnel from this panel in September 2015 and a further 40 from the same panel in December 2015.

I am further informed t hat preparations are under way for the 2015 General Servicerecruitment competition which will be launched this summer. The induction of successful candidates from this competition is expected to commence in November 2015. Once the training of these recruits is completed they will be posted throughout the country to fill vacancies that exist within the Permanent Defence Force.

The 2015 Cadetship competition for Army, Equitation School, Air Corp and Naval Service (Operations Branch, Electrical Engineering Branch and Marine Engineering Branch) was launched on 10 April 2015. The selection process for this competition is also progressing and induction is scheduled to take place in September 2015. It is planned to induct 56 Cadets from this competition.

Direct Entry competitions are held as required from which specialists appointments are filled. To date in 2015, the following targeted recruitment has taken placeor is progressing through current competitions:

1. Five Naval Service Engine Room Artificers wereinducted into the Naval Service in June 2015.

2. A competition to appoint Medical Officers remains open and applications are being accepted on an ongoing basis.

3. A recruitment campaign for Instrumentalists in the Defence Forces School of Music was launched on 02 April 2015 andis ongoing.

4. A competition to appoint a Conductor in the Defence Forces School of Music was launched on 05 June 2015 andis ongoing.

5. A recruitment campaign to enlist 25 Air Corps Apprentice Air Craft Technicianswas launched on 06 February 2015 and is ongoing.

A recruitment campaign for the Reserve Defence Force which began in October 2014 is ongoing, with 215 new recruits enlisted to date.

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.

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