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Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 17 Oct 1995

Vol. 457 No. 1

Ceisteanna—Questions Oral Answers - Civil Defence Membership.

Liz O'Donnell

Question:

21 Ms O'Donnell asked the Minister for Defence the current membership of the Civil Defence. [14983/95]

Máirín Quill

Question:

25 Miss Quill asked the Minister for Defence the current membership of the Civil Defence. [14983/95]

I propose to take Questions Nos. 21 and 25 together. The current membership of Civil Defence is approximately 10,000 personnel.

As the Minister is aware Civil Defence comes under the aegis of the Department of Defence. While it is a voluntary body, it is an important one. Over the years the image of Civil Defence has deteriorated. Many of the question today dealt with the dumping of explosives in the Irish Sea and so on. There is also a link between that and the Sellafield plant. Civil Defence will be to the forefront in the event of a discharge from Sellafield. One has only to look at what happened following the Chernobyl accident some years ago in places as far away as Lapland, Iceland, Donegal and the Minister's county to the sheep population. Only today we heard of a young child, deserted by her parents in Belorussia after she was disabled in the explosion, who has been adopted by a family from County Cork. The Minister will have to consider if Civil Defence with its supply of blankets and other equipment is able to deal with the after effects of an explosion at Sellafield. Not long ago there was a suspicion that there was something radically wrong in that plant. I appeal to the Minister to take a serious look at Civil Defence in general.

I hesitated to interrupt the Deputy but this is a statistical question.

I cannot accept the allegation by Deputy Clohessy about the lack of morale and the depletion of equipment in the Defence Forces. As the Deputy rightly said Civil Defence comes under the aegis of the Department of Defence. The range of activities in which the Civil Defence movement is involved, speaks for itself. The organisation was established initially to protect the civilian population from hazards of war. With the reduction of international tensions in recent years, the thrust of Civil Defence is changing and planning for the future is now geared towards objectives set out in the programme, Towards 2000, which is focused towards community help and support.

The objectives of the Towards 2000 programme are: to provide for stewarding at local and national events; to develop a response to flooding problems — as Minister of State responsible for the Office of Public Works I saw at first hand the tremendous work done in the Deputy's county, in County Galway and throughout the country in the autumn and spring of last year when horrendous flooding was experienced by the civilian population; to develop a response to environmental problems; to develop a response to major emergencies; to develop an overseas assistance response capability; to revise and update evacuee reception arrangements; to develop a response to plans for radiological protection emergencies; to develop a response to river, lake and coastal area search and recovery; to develop assistance response in blizzard conditions; to broaden the scope of rescue capability; market Civil Defence training on a commercial basis and it was actively and effectively engaged in forest fire-fighting during the summer.

The current membership of Civil Defence is approximately 10,000 personnel. Yesterday I had the pleasure of launching the press awareness campaign — the community endeavour programme 1995 — which will take place at the weekend. Several thousand Civil Defence personnel will be mobilised in Clonmel, Blarney, Castlebar and Westport to take part in a range of tests and challenges they are likely to experience as members of the Civil Defence movement.

This is a statistical question.

How does the current membership of Civil Defence compare with that of recent years?

I do not have the figures for recent years. From my observations, and dialogue with the members in County Mayo — I was a member of that local authority and Civil Defence had a permanent base in that county — it appears that the current membership is on a par with recent years. I have not got any feedback regarding a lack of morale or equipment. Indeed, we are in the process of providing new equipment. The provision for Civil Defence in the Defence Vote for 1995 is £2.182 million.

It is money well spent.

When we consider that we do not have any full-time personnel, apart from the Civil Defence officer who is appointed by the local county manager, it is money well spent. Civil Defence gives excellent value for money. It also works in co-ordination with the other services.

I propose to take Questions to the Minister for the Marine at 4.15 p.m., in accordance with Standing Order 36.

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