Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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113. To ask the Taoiseach and Minister for Defence to outline, in relation to the commitment made to increase the defence budget to €1.5 billion in 2022 values by 2028, his current estimate in 2024 values of the defence budget that will now be required by 2028; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36963/24]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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In July 2022, Government approved the move to ‘Level of Ambition 2’ (LOA2), as set out in the capability framework devised by the Commission on the Defence Forces. This provides for a rise in the Defence budget to €1.5 billion, in 2022 prices, by 2028, as part of annual Estimates processes.

This level of funding increase would allow for the required substantial transformation and investment in recruitment and equipment that were identified by the Commission. It encompasses both current and capital funding, and is supported by a comprehensive programme of work, currently underway throughout the Department and the Defence Forces, as outlined and prioritised in the Strategic Framework and the Detailed Implementation Plan for the Commission Report.

The Defence budget allocation is determined on an annual basis, within the overarching budgetary framework outlined each year by the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery & Reform, and approved by Dáil Eireann, having regard to the level of resources available and defence policy requirements. It is within this context that the annual Defence budget is determined each year and this annual process will continue out to 2028.

Currently, Budget 2025 discussions are intensifying, and, building on the increases in the Defence Vote Group allocations over recent years, while remaining cognisant of the fiscal parameters outlined in the Summer Economic Statement, I remain confident of a positive outcome for Defence.

Similar to recent years, any increase to funding will be used to enable further progress on the financial targets outlined within the Commission Report, while also ensuring that the Defence Forces continue to have the capacity to undertake all roles assigned by Government, both at home and overseas.