Vol. 573 No. 3
121 Dr. Cowley asked the Minister for Defence if he is committed to the reopening and full upgrading of a facility (details supplied); if this is a permanent closure by stealth of the Castlebar Military Barracks facility; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25539/03]
The main use of Castlebar Barracks in previous years was for the annual summer training camps for members of the Reserve Defence Force. This year, because of health and safety factors, it was not possible to hold the summer camps in Castlebar, and the necessary arrangements were made to facilitate personnel at Columb barracks, Mullingar, where accommodation and training facilities are of the highest standards.
The cost of providing temporary facilities at Castlebar barracks for summer camps and the question of upgrading the present permanent accommodation and kitchen facilities at the barracks to ensure compliance with building, health and safety and fire regulations raise value for money considerations. These questions are being carefully examined in my Department and no decisions have yet been made on the matter.
I have no proposals at present to close any Reserve Defence Force facility. Since my appointment, I have been totally committed to developing the Reserve Defence Force into a top-class organisation. Members of the Reserve Defence Force have already seen the benefits of this process in terms of improved equipment, more training days, enhanced levels of training and better clothing. This year saw an increase of 16% in the level of gratuity payable to personnel who attended annual training. As the current reorganisation process develops, there will be additional benefits in terms of a clearer role for the Reserve Defence Force and a better overall organisational structure. The closer integration of the Reserve Defence Force with the Army will result in additional benefits.
I know the Minister is a very sincere man and I believed everything he said when he made statements on this matter before. However, I am just a bit troubled by his statement that there is no commitment "at present" to close the facility. The matter is being looked at from a value-for-money perspective. In a previous reply in respect of the hiring of temporary accommodation in Castlebar in the absence the facility, the Minister stated, "It will also be appreciated that a value for money issue arises for consideration." It is certainly true that the summer camps were held in Roscommon.
I am very concerned about the Minister's statement regarding value for money, especially given that he is on record as having stated the import ance of preserving the facility in Castlebar. It is the headquarters of the FCA in Mayo and there is a great need for it. Will the Minister clarify his statement that there is no proposal at present to close the facility and that the value for money issue arises? Is it possible that he will close the facility by stealth?
One of the nicest things we can have in this House is trust of one another. Everything we have done for the Reserve Defence Force since I became Minister has been extremely positive. I listed the benefits in terms of improved equipment, more training days, the increase in the gratuity, the move towards integration and the opportunity to join the UN.
With regard to the Deputy's reserve regarding my use of the phrase "at present", we are now assessing the cost of pairing, reconstructing and improving the headquarters at Castlebar. We have received quite extraordinary estimates for this, amounting to a total of €6.5 million. When one takes into account that we use the barracks only for the Reserve Defence Force and for short enough periods, I could not, in all honesty, justify that kind of expenditure. However, I will certainly consider an intermediate measure.
I am very much in favour of the geographical layout of the barracks. I am very conscious of Mayo and the outlying counties and I will not allow any facility to be closed that I regard as required in the future. I regard Castlebar barracks as having a very definite future. Given the competition for resources in my Department, the needs I have to meet and the competition for funding between Departments, I do not have the necessary funding just now to meet all these commitments.
There are three blocks in two sections and the power is turned off in four out of six blocks, meaning that there is no light and heat. Will the Minister commit himself to turning on the power again? Without it, the facility cannot function. It is being used by the eighteenth battalion. There can never be any summer camps if the facility is not in operation.
Does the Minister not agree that the FCA has provided extremely good value for money? Does he not agree that the power should be turned on immediately?
Private Billy Kedian was the last man to die on duty for the Army – the Minister was at his funeral.
The power should always be turned on if possible. An issue of health and safety has been raised in connection with the wiring of the barracks and I am in no position to give direction to have power turned on in the face of that health and safety requirement. What I have to do, as quickly as I can, is try to find the resources to meet the rewiring requirements so it can be turned on. Deputy Cowley, as a medical practitioner as distinct from a politician, will understand that when a health and safety issue is raised, not by me or him but by those who use the facility, I have no option but to adopt my current approach.
