Terence Flanagan
Question:279. Deputy Terence Flanagan asked the Minister for Defence when he plans to open up recruitment again for the Defence Forces, Army, Navy and Air Corps; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54970/13]
View answerThursday, 19 December 2013
Questions (279)
Written answers
I am advised by the Military Authorities that the strength of the Permanent Defence Force, at 31 October 2013, the latest date for which details are available, was 9,222 comprising 7,422 Army, 778 Air Corps and 1,022 Naval Service personnel. Recruitment of personnel to the Army, Naval Service and Air Corps is determined in line with the operational requirements of each of the three services. As the Permanent Defence Force is currently below the agreed stabilised strength of 9,500, it is my intention that targeted recruitment will continue within the resource envelope allocated to Defence. It is planned to run a new General Service recruitment competition in the first half of 2014. Details will be made available on the Defence Forces website www.military.ie when the competition commences.
With the support of the Chief of Staff and within the resources available, I intend to retain the capacity of the Defence Forces to operate effectively across all roles and to undertake the tasks laid down by Government both at home and overseas.