Vol. 485 No. 3
14 Mr. Stanton asked the Minister for Defence the membership, appointment and expertise of the Reserve Defence Force review group recently established; when it will begin work; and when he will have its intermediate and final reports. [23165/97]
The members of the Reserve Defence Force study group, the setting up of which I announced recently, has not been finalised. However, I can inform the Deputy that it will be a joint military/civilian study group. It is my intention that the group will commence its examination of the reserve early in the New Year.
It is not proposed to include deadlines in the study group's terms of reference for the submission of interim or final reports. I am confident, nevertheless, that the group will conduct the study as quickly as possible and submit its recommendations at the earliest possible date. In that regard I am advised by the military authorities that a considerable amount of preliminary work has already been undertaken by them. For example, military boards were set up to seek the views of the members of the reserve on its future organisation and structure. The boards consulted with members and sought submissions from them. They completed this task earlier this year and it is anticipated that the work undertaken by the military authorities will be of considerable assistance to the study group in its deliberations.
Has the Minister negotiated or held discussions with RDFRA about the setting up of the working group? Is it his intention to include members of the Reserve Defence Force in the group?
It is not my intention but I have not finalised my deliberations on the group. However, the reserve will be involved in the consultative group which will underlie the work of the overall group. I have had a number of representations on this and might be prepared to look at it again. I will finalise that in the course of next week. The involvement of the reserve at the consultative level is guaranteed but I am not sure that its involvement in the overall group is the wisest course. We must strike a balance and I am not certain whether it is correct. I am thinking about it at present.
Is it not the case that the special studies commissioned into the Air Corps and Naval Service are already several months overdue? Is the Minister satisfied with the inordinate delays in bringing forward these new studies, which are an integral part of the Defence Forces review and information plan? Will members of the public be permitted to make submissions to the working party on the Reserve Defence Force being set up by the Minister?
I am interested in facilitating the wider public, particularly in the outlying regions. As the Defence Forces are centralised and made more efficient and mobile there is a risk that FCA activities in outlying areas of many counties may be downgraded and I am most anxious to avoid that. One way would be to give local communities the opportunity to provide advice on the value of the work undertaken, such as the guard of honour and other ceremonial occasions in which the FCA facilitate people. It is also possible that withdrawing the FCA could denude those areas. I assure the Deputy that this facility will be made available.
I am disappointed the reports on the Air Corps and the Naval Service have taken so long. One reason is that when the first report was made available to the then Minister, it was considered not to be comprehensive enough and that some questions needed to be addressed more fully. That caused some of the delay. I understand I will have the report within the next few weeks and I have already indicated to Deputies Bell and Fitzgerald that I will make it public as soon as possible.
Will the Minister indicate the terms of reference of the commission or working group? I have heard rumours but I have not seen the actual terms. Could he also indicate what the reporting procedures will be — in other words, what will happen when the report is completed? He has indicated it will be available but will there be an opportunity to discuss the report, after the commission has completed its work but before the recommendations are implemented?
The advances in our parliamentary system in terms of reaching consensus and listening are a valuable component in how we do business. For non-military people, such as myself as Minister for Defence, I want to have the best advice available to me in the House and on the committee. I will see to what extent that can be facilitated on an ongoing basis. As to the Defence Forces Review Implementation Plan, the study of the reserve force will take cognisance of the requirements to integrate elements of the reserve force in the reorganised units of the PDF and practical deployment of non-integrated reserve elements, and the tasking of integrated and non-integrated elements, the effective strength of the reserve forces and the required equipment and training levels, proposals in relation to the current first line reserve, the cost of the reserve forces, command and control structures, and requirements and organisation of the PDF training cadre whose strength will not exceed that provided for in phase 1 in the implementation plan. It is a very comprehensive, searching appraisal.
Can we have a copy?
I will make it available.
How many members of the FCA attend training nights throughout the year without receiving remuneration? Traditionally the reward at the end of the year was two weeks training. In recent years this has been reduced to one, due to cutbacks. I welcomed the pre-election promise by the Minister as shadow spokesperson to consider extending this period to two weeks. Can I assume that in 1998 the FCA training period will be increased to two weeks?
The Deputy should not make that assumption for 1998, but perhaps he will leave the matter with me and make the assumption for 1999.
Does the Minister agree that it is vitally important that the working group should continue some element of the reserve forces' membership, given that they have practical and direct experience and knowledge of the existing forces in urban and rural areas, with all their faults and failings.
I have an open mind in relation to it. It is not a hard and fast rule. In relation to many other organisations, I have looked at how the broader group takes an objective overview and how, in the process, the consultative groups incorporate the views of everybody who has basic experience. I will be making a final decision in the next week, and the Deputy might win out the argument.
Has the Minister met RDFORRA on this issue?
I am in the process of meeting all the representative groups, all of whom will have the opportunity to make their case in the next couple of months.
