Emer Currie (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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57. To ask the Taoiseach and Minister for Defence the number of volunteers with the Civil Defence; the plans to help promote participation in the Civil Defence; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53501/25]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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There are currently just under 2,000 active volunteers and probationers in the Civil Defence organisation. I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge and thank all volunteers, both past and present, for their continuing commitment and service to our communities. My Department is working with local authorities, through the multi-annual Development Plan process, where a key focus is to run induction campaigns to recruit additional volunteers in all 28 Civil Defence units. Responsibility for induction lies with the local authorities but my Department will continue to work with those Units to ensure they have the resources and capacity to absorb the additional volunteers.

In support of these induction campaigns, just last month I launched a Civil Defence recruitment campaign, across both social media and local radio, to raise the profile of Civil Defence nationally across all demographics and to highlight the breadth of activity in which Civil Defence is involved. Many of our Civil Defence Officers have completed radio interviews on foot of this campaign.